Public Servises
Postal Services
Post offices are generally open from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, and are closed on weekends and holidays. Mailboxes are located on roadsides. You can send valuable materials, such as documents, quickly to your home country by using the Express Mail Service (EMS) available at post offices.
Banking Services
You should open a bank account and a postal savings account as soon as you arrive in Japan because any official payments from the university or the government (your monthly stipend, reimbursements for medical expenses, etc.) are paid into your bank account and/or postal savings account.
When going to the bank or the post office to open your account, you should bring personal identification with you, such as your passport. You may be required to show your alien registration card, but it usually takes two weeks for it to be issued after you apply for it. As a substitute for that, please bring a Certificate of Alien Registration with you.
When you need to receive money from or send money to foreign countries, telegraph remittance services and issuance of remittance checks are available at local banks and post offices.
Public Telephone
Insert a 10yen coin (for about a one minute local call), a 100yen coin, or a telephone card and dial the number you wish to reach. Telephone cards are available at convenience stores. You can make international calls at phones with the "INTERNATIONAL TELEPHONE" sign on them.
You can make overseas calls by dialing; (Access number) + (010) + (Country code) + (Area number) + (Number of person you are calling).Access numbers are (001) for KDDI, (0003) for NTT.
Hospitals
There is a Health Care Center available on campus for you to get medical treatment, counseling, health consultations and directions to local hospitals. The center is open 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. It is not necessary to make an appointment. Consultations and medicine are free of charge for students. Even if you need to go to a hospital, please do not worry about it too much.
Garbage Collection
Kumamoto City collects garbage separated into the following categories – combustible, non-combustible, plastic package, recyclable, bulky, and electrical appliances. Garbage separation charts are attached below. Be sure to check the charts before you take out your garbage. Each category has its own collection day. Take out your garbage to the designated site by 8:30 a.m. on the specified collection day with designed bag. Do not put your garbage out the previous night, as dogs and cats might tear open the bags and scatter the garbage. This in turn would cause trouble for the neighbors. Also, make sure to use designated bags, or they won't collect your garbage.
City Hall distributes garbage collection calendars for your reference. City Hall also has these calendars available on their website.
http://www.city.kumamoto.jp/hpkiji/pub/List.aspx?c_id=5&class_set_id=2&class_id=121
Garbage separation charts
