Generally you are more than likely going to be replacing a JET going home, and not be the first JET at the school you work at. Since you need a place to sleep the day you arrive, the school will have already arranged living accomodations for you. Since renting apartments is initially expensive (and a pain in the butt) the school is going to want you to live in the apartment the last JET just vacated. It shouldn't be something you have to sort out for yourself, as where would you stay until you got it done?

Cheers - spent last 2 months working in Singapore and South Korea with very little free time to kill on the net lol!

(Sorry for going off topic!)

I knew one JET who's place was actually a house owned by the school she went to. Meaning that not only did she live in a three bedroom house literally next door to her workplace but she also did not have to rent. Some people have all the luck! Don't forget that along with the apartment, most JET's inherit bikes, pots and pans, books, sometimes cars, etcetera, etcetera.

Hurray!

I especially want a bike :). I love cycling and the idea of being able to cycle year round (if I'm pretty much anywhere but Hokkaido!) is exciting. Trust me, that's not something realistic if you live through frigid Canadian winters!

Actually, it can be done. I was on JET from 1996-98, in Wakayama-ken (about 1 hour south of Osaka). The AJET organization in my prefecture planned activities all the time... hiking, camping, visiting an orphanage for Christmas, going to local festivals, etc. They set up 3 weekend-long homestays each year, and I attended all 6 of them in my 2 years.

Each prefecture's AJET is different, some far more active than others. Generally (though there are probably some exceptions), the more rural AJET groups tend to be more active than the big city groups... there's more interest among rural JETs to get together and do things on weekends because little towns don't have as much to do as a big city.

As far as requesting an area, I really enjoyed living in the Kansai area. I requested 3 cities in the Kansai area, and although I didn't get them, I was placed in a small city of 55,000 people less than an hour's train ride from either Nara or Osaka, 2 of my choices (Kyoto was the 3rd). It was nice to be out of the busy city, in the countryside a bit, but still close enough that taking a train into Osaka for a Saturday of shopping and fun was simple. Also, the countryside tends to have cheaper rent.

I had a bike, but it was a "mama-chari", or "mama's chariot"... an old bike with a basket on the front, lol! Mountain bikes are fairly rare and expensive in Japan, though your predecessor may have one to sell to you, or know of someone with one.

Well, I'm not too concerned about the way the bike looks. I don't really need a mountain bike, I'd be happy enough with a city bike :).