During the past two years, traveling to Japan, the home of our mother company, was nearly impossible due to strict COVID measures. Luckily, the border rules have started to loosen up and in June 2022, two Yamagata Europe colleagues were able to set foot in our beloved Japan again. Here’s a short impression of their visit, and a look at how Japan is managing to shift to a new normal.
In March 2022, Japan opened its borders to holders of business visas. In June 2022, the rules were loosened once more, so that also holders of student visas and tourists on authorized package tours could enter the country.
Although tourism could greatly benefit from Japan’s record-low yen, the border rules for foreign visitors and tourists at the time of writing were still quite restrictive. However, they were permissive enough to allow two of our team members to visit Japanese customers and colleagues again after more than two years. On 29 June, Asumi (Business Development Manager) and Heidi (Operations Manager) finally boarded a plane to Tokyo.
Entering Japan
Before entering Japan, we needed to install the MySOS app and upload a vaccination certificate, a PCR test certificate, as well as our personal details. With the app showing a blue screen, we were able to enter Japan via the ‘Fast Track’ route. There, we were asked to show our blue screen when walking towards the airport exit. It was a smooth and flawless experience, exactly the way you would expect from a well-organized country like Japan.
Japanese staff are very helpful and make you feel at ease. Every few meters, there’s a friendly assistant guiding you in the right direction. In less than 15 minutes after leaving the plane, we saw the immigration counters. There, we needed to show our passports, register our fingerprints, and have our picture taken – without mask!
Ongoing COVID restrictions
Once we set foot in Japan, it felt like we were slightly thrown back into time. In Europe, COVID restrictions have more or less been lifted, and we have returned back to some sort of normal. In Japan however, health measures are still in place, including quarantines and face masks. Although you are allowed to take off your mask when you are outside or when social distance can be guaranteed, no one does this so you will see people wearing masks indoors as well as outdoors. In the western world, people may tend to rebel against restrictions and regulations more, but the Japanese follow the rules and do what they think is in society’s best interest.
Measures to prevent the spread of COVID are still everywhere. When you enter a coffee shop for example, your temperature gets measured, you need to use hand sanitizer, there are screens between tables and at counters and, obviously, masks are mandatory. When in Rome, do as the Romans, so we followed all rules and regulations. However, there were times we did feel a bit awkward when we noticed people were reluctant to sit next to us foreigners in the train or in restaurants.
Working from home
Home office was already quite popular in Europe before COVID. In Japan however, working from home used to be exceptional, virtually non-existing. Since COVID, home office has almost become the standard in our company in Japan. Most employees now work from home full-time and they only travel to the office for important meetings once every few months. Not evident for a country where houses are small and a separate room with a desk is only for the happy few. It will be interesting to see if and when employees will be encouraged to go back to the office.
More expensive
In Japan, prices have remarkably remained stable for many years. What you paid for public transport, food or a restaurant visit just recently was virtually what you paid twenty years ago. Until now, unfortunately. Prices for food, electricity and fuel have gone up significantly. It’s a hot news topic in Japan that worries people a lot. Of course, COVID did not cause this alone. The war in Ukraine may be a much more important cause.
What’s not to like about Japan?
Despite the strict rules and rising prices, it was great to be back in Japan and to be able to meet with our colleagues and customers again. And the good news: Japan is still our good old beloved Japan. It’s a safe country to travel to, the people are friendly, the food is incredible, public transport is flawless, the streets are clean and – last but not least – it is still a shopping paradise!
