Quarantine for the JET Programme

A welcome break from life or a hellish confinement for two weeks?

by Evie Hooper

The view from my window

When I entered Japan, it had strict rules for entry and quarantine. PCR tests, QR codes from health questionnaires, a 4 hour wait on the other side to get through the airport with a fun saliva covid test. Then to top it off, after finally arriving at the hotel we were given a lot of information on things that had to be done by the next morning (which after 24 hours of travelling and it's 1am and you just want to sleep but you have to register tracing apps on your phone, isn’t fun).

I was sent to Keio Plaza hotel in Tokyo. The room was spacious and had a nice large window to stare out of. I woke up on the first day feeling rough. Not only had I missed morning temperature check (panic), I was spectacularly dehydrated, suffering from caffeine withdrawal, and unsurprisingly, jet lagged. A call to the help desk quickly sorted my first issue, they were kind and spoke English. 

We were given a schedule of videos to watch each day as our orientation. The schedule called for things like reading up on Japanese culture, watching videos about the school system, learning very briefly how to ALT, and a bit of Japanese language study. The schedule covered Monday to Friday, with weekends off. Although there were surveys to fill out after each day to show we’d been doing what we were supposed to, you could more or less get through the schedule as you wanted to. The whole experience for me felt strangely like being at university during dissertation time. You want to go out but you know you have work to do so sit in your room working away at the laptop. I’m usually the kind of person that doesn't feel right if they haven’t been outside at least once during the day, but maybe because of my huge window, I didn’t get too claustrophobic being stuck in that room for 2 weeks.

I decided I didn't want to suffer jet lag for the whole time so chose to be strict on my sleep cycle, each day started at 6.30am. I fell asleep briefly at midday on Day 2 but after those first two days I was settled into Japanese Standard Time. I know other people on my floor who were still having issues after 2 weeks — I was lucky to solve it in only 2 days. 

Breakfast would arrive from 7am onwards, so I spent each morning doing home workout videos. As a vegetarian, they provided me with vegan meals. The breakfast often consisted of a fruit juice carton with bread, and a bean salad, quinoa, or tofu. 

I would then do the morning scheduled work until around lunch time, when I would eagerly anticipate being given more food. I will point out the food was always cold. As a dangerous dangerous Brit I was forbidden from leaving my room for the first 4 days, so got used to the cold meals, but there was a microwave available if eating cold bentous wasn’t your thing. Why did I look forward to the meals? Because every day had a mystery ingredient that had me scouring Google to work out what I was actually eating. Even now there are things my supervisor couldn't name, so it shall forever be a mystery. I enjoyed the food, and was quite glad that the meals gave me a chance to adjust to the flavour of Japanese food — I even came to like pickled daikon (which I’m pretty sure I received EVERY day). I rejoiced to the Gods of Bentou on the days I got tempura.

And so the days passed. Feeling as equally long as they did short. Before I knew it, it was time to leave the hotel. Luckily I had refrained from incurring a bill at the tuc shop they set up for us, but I know many people that managed to build up a pretty substantial bill. I jumped on a bus, then the shinkansen (all with a guide!) and found myself at my prefecture of placement, being greeted by a senpai JET and my supervisor holding sheets of paper with my name on. 

I was lucky that my quarantine was a peaceful time of youtube workouts, studying, eating new foods and watching anime. I'm sure there were people struggling with being inside, struggling with the food provided, struggling with the jet lag and being alone. Things have changed since I had to do my quarantine, it’s already shorter, and I'm sure it'll change again by the time the next set of JETs get ready for their departure to Japan. Use the quarantine as a chance to adjust to your new environment, and catch up on all those shows that have been on your watch list since forever. It’ll be over before you know it!

Hang in there, and good luck!