Don't let Crispy end up another statistic...

[cstaylor]

High school boy found bashed to death in park

KASUKABE, Saitama -- The body of a high school student was found at a park here early Tuesday morning. The boy had been fatally bashed in the face, police said

Here's to Crispy: hope you survive your stay in Saitama, the cesspool of Japan.

[Crispy]

I have some anti-baseball bat combat training, I should be fine. Also, I would probably be about three inches taller than any high school kids who would assault me.

[cstaylor]

Some Japanese high school boys can be compared to mid-sized dogs. Sure, in a fight, one-on-one, you'd probably win. But for the most part, singles don't attack... they're actually polite.

But when you get a group of dogs together, egging each other on, that's when the brutality happens. My suggestions:

- When going out at night, always keep at least one Japanese with you. They can help you navigate the hospital or koban, wherever your anti-baseball bat training takes you

- Be especially careful on Saturday or Sunday nights... that's when the hooligans congregate

- Make sure you get an alien card (you probably will since you'll be here over the 3 month tourist visa anyway), 'cause the cops will want to see it in case your brawling causes some injuries

Good luck... let us know if Saitama is as bad as the news makes it out to be!

[Crispy]

Yes, I will be issued an alien card. I was surprised to learn that I'd have to surrender my passport to the municipal government. Also, I won't be able to keep the card as a souvenier.

Hm, I'll try to keep a Japanese with me, but I heard that Japan was way safer than the US, as far as walking around at night. Is that not true? And Saitama is a prefecture, isn't it? Isn't that like saying that a whole state in the US is problematic? What the hell am I talking about, I say things like that about California all the time.

[cstaylor]

Depends on where and when.

You have to surrender your passport? Why? That sounds fishy to me...

[Crispy]

That's what they said. I asked the representative if we were going to need to keep our passports on us at all times, as I am used to doing as a tourist, and he said no, we would be relinquishing our passports and getting an alien card instead. Then we would trade them back for the passport when we left.

[kamome]

That is really strange. You need your passport in order to have your gaijin card processes, but then they let you walk away with your passport in hand afterwards. You will be needing your passport at other times during your stay in Japan; you should be very skeptical about this.

[cstaylor]

Dude, I have an Alien card, and you don't have to trade anything for them. I'd suggest following that up... ask them why they must have your passport.

Seriously, if you can fight it, don't relinquish it.

[Crispy]

Maybe this is a misunderstanding or something, y'all's responses are about the same as mine was when I heard it. I'm gonna email the program director.

[cstaylor]

Yeah, you're going to need the passport if you need to go to the American embassy.

Just tell the Program Directory that you'd feel more comfortable keeping your passport, and if they're worried about you fleeing with the alien card, just give them your driver's license instead... you can still get into the embassy without that.

-Chris