Hello, it’s great to see you really after a while :)

I was quite in the same situation that my last visit was Jan 2020 before the COVID-19 spread, and also I lost my grandma while the pandemic …

To enter Japan from Germany, it gets more and more strict due to the Omicron. I think it’s the same for some states in the US. After arrival from areas where Omicron variant has been found, you have to be at a hotel Japanese government keeps for quarantine for 3-10 days. You cannot go out. After this quarantine, you have to stay in somewhere and proof that you don’t move around without a reason with an app until 14 days after your arrival.

I was lucky that I didn’t have to stay in the hotel from the government as the border control regulation for people from Germany changed after my entry. Even though it wasn’t comfortable at all to mostly stay at a hotel for 10 days and receive notifications to report from the app randomly.

I understand Japanese government has to protect people in Japan and I guess they want to avoid criticisms but it’s too strict. They should take humanitarian aspects into consideration.