Are there any food banks in Japan where I can eat from?

Question:

I am moving to Japan this August. I have to pay the rate of a full month's rent in the apartment where I will be living between August 20 and 31. I even have to pay my own airfare 100%, no reimbursements, and definately no settlement allowance nor advance. I will not get my first paycheck until Oct.10 and the money I have or will have remaining will not be able to cover the high costs of expenses I will have to pay, such as food and utilities and even the rent for September. Plus I am reluctant to use my credit card which has a $1200 legitamate debt. I even got student loan debts to pay like I have been paying since the past 5 years. (I hope I can elapse my student loan debt repayments). It will be difficult before I get my first paycheck in Japan because I will very likely have to starve. I am arriving on there on August 20 but my contract starts on August 31. Are there any food banks in Sano City or anywhere nearby in Japan where I could eat food before I get paid on October 10? How will I deal with fighting my starvation?

Answer:

Look, this is hard but not impossible. I used to live on $800 a month (or the equivalent in yen) which included $300 rent (+utilities). This means that I spent $500 a month on food, necessities, and transportation. Remember there are 100 yen shops. Go to one and get only the very base essentials. You can also eat cheaply if you never go out to restaurants, buy things that are on sale, and eat only essentials (rice, vegis, meat; no deserts or soda). In all honesty, if I was careful, I had money left over.

So my advice: Just take what cash you have and use your credit card. You will have enough to get by if you don't go out and buy a ton of stuff right away. Use your cash to pay for the two months rent upfront, so you are not tempted to spend it. Then budget out what you have left. When you start getting paid again, you will be able to pay off the credit card easily.

P.S. I would call and ask them to raise your credit limit. Usually they will do it and it would be good for you to have a cushion. Also, remember that you could open a credit card when you get to Japan too.

P.P.S. To answer your original question, this food bank services the Sano Area but the food goes out to organizations (in this case retirement homes) not to individuals.
http://www.sansyoukai.or.jp/foodbank.htm…