Rules for Staying with a Japanese Family

Meals

1) Breakfast

Japanese people usually eat rice, miso soup, and some side dishes for breakfast. Please try to have breakfast with them to experience it. However, if you prefer a Western-style breakfast, your host family is happy to offer what you like for your breakfast. Please request your preferred breakfast, such as bread, eggs and coffee or tea.

2) Lunch

Lunch is not included in this home stay program.

3) Dinner

Dinner is not included in this home stay program. However, you can request ahead of time if you would like to have dinner with your home stay family. The cost of dinner is usually about 500 yen. Please pay this cost when you make a request. If possible, make a request the day before, or at the very latest, in the morning of the day.

Telephone

You are not allowed to use your host family's telephone. However, if you have a pre-paid phone card (sold at convenience stores), you can ask permission to use the telephone with that card.

GenkiJACS also offers prepaid mobile phone rentals at low rates. Please ask at the school counter for more details.

Kitchen and bath

If you would like to use the kitchen, please be sure that you know how to use everything. If you are not sure about something, ask your host family before trying to use it, especially potentially dangerous devices such as gas cooker and water heater.

Please write your name on anything you put in the fridge. In addition, do not eat or drink anything in the fridge that is not yours.

Washing

Please ask your host family for instructions.

Others

• Please take your shoes off before entering a house.
• Please turn the lights off when you leave rooms.
• Don’t forget to turn off faucets and taps firmly when you are finished.
• Don’t forget to wash your own dishes after breakfast and/or dinner.
• Try not to make noise after 10pm (or 9pm, if your host family has small children).
• Be sure to tell your host family if you will be staying out for the night.
• If you have any questions, try to ask your host family using a dictionary and gesture.
• Japan is very strict about recycling trash, so if you are not sure about throwing something away, ask your host family first. In general, paper, plastic and metal items are all recycled.

These are the basic rules for staying with a Japanese family. However, there may still be cultural gaps between you and the Japanese family. The best way to fill in these gaps (and practice your Japanese!) is through communication, so try to communicate with your host family as much as possible. We hope that you will have a wonderful time with your host family while you are staying Fukuoka . Please don't hesitate to ask us if you have any problems or questions. We are always happy to support your stay in Fukuoka.

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