The wonderful women of ELSI mentioned in Christine's blog: (clockwise from the top) Asako Sato, Atsusa Asai, Yatomi Matsumoto, and Sayaka Sugimoto

Now that I have been spoiled by the staff here at the Earth-Life Science Institute (ELSI), I don't know if I can ever go back to the status quo again. It was a huge undertaking to relocate two professionals, a baby daughter, while at the same time setting up our young adult daughter to live on her own for the first time. It is difficult to imagine a situation with so many facets to take into account, but the ELSI staff made all of this possible. They surpassed our wildest expectations, and they did it with a smile.

I write this for those of you who will come to ELSI in the future, whether it be for a few weeks or a few years. This is my first international move, so there were many new hurdles to clear in comparison to my previous moves, with many of the details (immigration, housing, child care) requiring attention months in advance. We are also committing to ELSI for the long term, for at least the 10 years that it is currently funded, and perhaps beyond if we are successful in making ELSI indispensable. This wasn't just another temporary relocation for us, we aren't simply putting some things on hold for a few years until we return to the USA. We are establishing a new life here, and thanks to all the support from ELSI, our life is good and our decision has been validated.

We began working with ELSI staff in January 2013, six months before our departure. In March we completed the first step: renewing our passports so that they wouldn't expire during our term of employment. We also acquired the most adorable passport ever for our infant daughter Camilla, but I digress. In April we were swamped with commitments at home, and we ramped up our preparations in May. We were in constant communication with the extraordinary Sayaka Sugimoto. She laid out the roadmap of all the tasks we needed to accomplish for our immigration paperwork and for Camilla's day care needs. Sayaka spent 3 years in the US teaching Japanese, so her English is fantastic and all of her communications are very thorough. After sending some of our personal documents to ELSI we received our Certificates of Eligibility, which is the first step toward getting a visa to work in Japan. Sayaka then helped us with the visa application form that was sent to the Japanese Consulate General in San Francisco. After a 1-week turnaround, our visas were in hand. But we still needed flights, and a place to live, and a day care that felt comfortable, and all the paperwork for the day care, and tax forms, and...and...this was going to be harder than we thought.

ELSI to the rescue! But first Sayaka would need reinforcements, so Yatomi Matsumoto was hired as another assistant for international researchers at ELSI. Yatomi is new to working in an academic setting, but we would have never known it if she hadn't told us. That's part of the ELSI difference, instead of expecting Sayaka to do more work as more researchers arrive, they actually hired an additional person to help carry the load. What a concept! It was evident from start to finish that making our experience positive was a top priority. Although we haven't quite finished settling in, but we can now see the finish line, and it feels like a great accomplishment.　

Sayaka and Yatomi took care of our travel and day care preparations. During those first few days when one is weary from the move, the flight, the jet lag, and unable to think straight...still everything went according to plan. Sayaka personally accompanied us to the Ota Ward Office to get our residence cards. Resident cards in hand, she helped us set up our bank accounts. Yatomi accompanied us to the Tanpopo day care and provided translation between ourselves and the people who would now be caring for our infant daughter during our working days. Additionally, she agreed to serve as the main contact person, should anything arise that needs our immediate attention. And it is also worth mentioning that during all of this, Camilla turned one-year-old on our first day of work, which was also her first day at day care.

It was important to us that Camilla gets integrated into Japanese society, so attending a Japanese day care is essential, and Yatomi's continued work translating for us and the staff is invaluable to that end. Additionally, Camilla had just been accepted into Tanpopo since Sayaka put her on the waiting list months ahead of time. Sayaka also created an English translation of the day care handbook before we arrived so that we could get a feel for the place and know what to expect. Yatomi has accompanied us on two doctor's visits for Camilla and will fill out all the forms for Camilla's vaccinations.

Christine at the Asahi Breweries headquarter building designed by Philippe Starck

I haven't even mentioned the housing! At the beginning of the year, Sayaka put us on the wait list for the Tokyo Tech International House (a small apartment building with one and two bedroom furnished units for foreign researchers), so our housing for the first year is already taken care of, at a greatly reduced price compared to Tokyo rentals. While the amenities here are simple, it was quite a luxury to know that we had a furnished apartment ready for us. Barring any unforeseen circumstances, these apartments will also be available to future ELSI arrivals.

Just think: how long have I been rambling so far, and I bet I could easily come up with at least 30 more examples of how ELSI went above and beyond for us. For instance, Atsusa Asai worked quickly to order a new laptop for me immediately after I arrived. Oh, just one more, Asako Sato, the Assistant to the Director Kei Hirose, even arranged "Shokibarai" (beat the summer heat) party upon our arrival so that we and others who had recently arrived at ELSI could start getting to know each other. That is the ELSI difference, everyone matters and is important to accomplishing our scientific mission. International prominence is a primary goal of the World Premier International Research Center Initiative. ELSI is taking that to heart and providing by far the world's best assistance for researchers relocating to a new country. I am so thankful to Asako, Sayaka, Yatomi, and Atsusa and everyone else who contributed to our smooth landing in Tokyo, and I am looking forward to all we will accomplish together in the future.