This actually happened our first week here but I had other things to write about first. So without further ado I shall now introduce you to the world of what to do to live in Japan as a student. First of all you need to have the necessary documents. We start with a passport and a student visa finishing with the schools acceptance letter stating that you will be a student. This may vary from place to place but I'm fairly certain that you need these at least. With these documents you get a temporary stay of residence, health insurance, and a seal used for signing official documents is ordered.
After meeting up at the school at 9:00 we all took the tram to the Hakodate City Hall. It was a little brisk so we were all wrapped up and bundled in scarfs, save for our friends from Norway. They were enjoying the weather quite nicely. The city hall is a large building with processing centers on the main floor and the other floors are occupied by various offices and conference rooms. They had a rather interesting light sculpture in the center that ran from the ceiling to the lower floor. There were also various artworks made in tile and displays showing interesting facts about Hakodate.
After entering the main floor we were given a number for the waiting queue. Mr. Hatsugai, our registration and processing adviser, and a few of the student workers were there to help assist us with the paperwork. They had plenty of seating so everyone was able to enjoy themselves and talk for a bit. After receiving the paperwork for the application of residency, the student workers helped us to fill in the forms correctly. When the time came for our turn in the queue, each student went up individually with Mr. Hatsugai and completed a small information verification with the clerk.
By the time all of us were done we took an hour lunch break. Most of us went to the local convenience store and got a variety of sandwiches and drinks. As the wind was very cold we all ate quickly and headed back into city hall. Mr. Hatsugai had to head back to the school so the student workers stayed to help us finish up. For the rest of the hour some of the students explored the building and looked at the displays. There was a miniature scale model of Hakodate and a few photos of important historical figures.
After the hour was us we retrieved our paperwork from the clerk and moved over to the area for insurance processing. We turned in the paperwork as one stack and each student went up individually to receive the files stating that we had temporary residence. Temporary insurance cards were issued until the actual insurance cards arrived in the mail. There was a small processing fee and then the paperwork was all finished.
Most of the student went back to the school or to their apartments. I and a few other individuals went to the small burger joint called HOTBOX, this is now my favorite place to eat western style food. They have the best hamburgers! Each burger is about the size of a person’s open hand and stuffed with delicious ingredients. The burger is wonderfully juicy and they have fresh lettuce and tomatoes. I got a salsa burger and I now believe that Salsa should be added as a regular topping to hamburgers. A regular burger is nice but the salsa adds a really nice mixture of flavors. Fries are a side dish that comes with every hamburger order and these fries were crispy and perfectly seasoned. For dessert I had an Oreo shake. I will completely admit that Oreo anything is pretty much my own personal guilty pleasure. It was a wonderful dinner with wonderful people and I hope to go there again sometime.