Sakura has bloomed in the first week of April 2014

The Sakura right in front of my home - Kita-Toda

It's my second time to be able to see the beautiful sakura in Japan. It usually blooms towards the end of March until the beginning of April. This year it was in the first week of April. The Winter was longer than usual so it bloomed quite late.
Usually in the south of Japan it blooms earlier than in the north.

I personally think the blooming time is one of the most magical moments in Japan.
Last year I saw the cherry blossoms at the Ueno Park. This year I was able to see them at the Imperial Palace and Ichigaya.

Ichigaya

Imperial Palace Chidoya

 

They say the cherry blossoms at the Imperial Palace are the most beautiful in Tokyo. Indeed I spent a very magical day there!!

This beauty last for a couple of days until...

 

... the blossoms fall and the trees grow leafs.

It's definitely worth seeing a beauty like this live!!

How to get a job in Japan with a Student visa / Hello Work

First of all you need to apply for a working permission. You can request it directly at the airport or at the foreigner embassy.
For requesting it at the airport I received from my school a sheet where I had to sign it and turn it in at the airport control counter.
At the embassy you have to fill in more papers and wait for 2 weeks till you get the permission.

With this stamp on your residence card you are allowed to work in Japan

Remember that with the student-visa you can only work 28 hours per week!!

The CV

Here in Japan they use printed forms for your CV!! You can buy them in every Conbini store.
They have 2 different kind of CVs. For Part-time job and for full-time job.

Part-time job CV パート、アルバイト

You have to fill it in by hand and you can't copy them. Passport pictures are also needed for it.

Hello Work

Hello Work

What is it

All my friends at school recommended me to go to Hello Work. It's a work agency that helps you in finding a job.
It's charge-free and until now no one ever told me, that they didn't get a job and basically half of my school found their job through that agency. I also found my part-time job there.
They also have English speaking officers.

Office Location

The office worker are all really friendly. The office is located between Shin-Okubo and Shinjuku's Kabuki-chou. Right at a main road next to the train station.

Hello Work Shinjuku (Kabukicho Branch) 1F, 2-42-10 Kabuki-cho, Shinjuku-ku

Keep in mind that it takes almost 3 hours at the first time you go there. The earlier you go, the better. The office opens at 9 a.m. You can also call and ask for an appointment.

What they do

After they saved your informations in their files, they immediately look for any type of jobs in their data bank or also for the job that you want to apply for.

If you are interested in that job they will call for you and rather you have an interview or you can send them your CV.
If they found 2 or 3 places that are interesting, they will send you away. If it didn't work out you have to go back again and they will look for further places.

I went twice there until I got my part-time job at a restaurant.

Other ways


There are also different types of websites to find a job and also one special one for foreigners. It's called Gaijinpot.


Good luck!! =)