Japan trip in Jan 2011! :-)

[Whitey14]

Hi all!

THis is my first post...of many hopefully!

I stayed in Japan in Shimizu, Shizuoka for 3months back in 2003 during my gap year. After uni, i worked near my home town, just outside London. But I've always felt like i belong in japan, so i am planning to go back for 3/6months at the beginning of the new year, to try to learn (remember) some basic japanese and get a feel for it again, hopefully i may then decide what i want to do with myself!

I'm sure you hear this all the time! but my worries are firstly,

* how would i get a 6month extension to the tourist visa. The government website seems to say you need to show your plane tickets, arrive and get a 3month visa, then apply again in Japan...but by then i would already have my return flight. Am i missing something here? does everyone buy an open return flight ticket?

* what does everyone do for accommodation, previously i stayed in different ryokans, and then did 2 months in leopalace at a cheaper rate.
Does anybody recommend a company who lets out single apartments like leopalace? or are leopalace good/cheap? all i need is my own place for as cheap as possible (and reasonably clean, hehe)

Thanks!

i hope to meet friends on here!
Adam

[chucriat]

You can get the visa for the 6 month or more if you are coming for some short of education course that lasts six month or for the job or the project which last for 6 months or more.