So I need to get an eye exam here in Japan for contacts and have two concerns.

1) What words would be worth knowing before going in (big uncommon words)?

2) How the hell do you find an optometrist in Japan? I'm in Osaka and am having a hell of a time finding one using google. Is there a Yellow pages for Japan, online?

Thanks

glasses make you look sexier.

In all seriousness I think you could call up any of the many international centers in Osaka set up to help foreigners. They can probably hook you up with an eye doctor who speaks English.

Probably, but I suspect they are more expensive as a result. You can get the exam in the states from Walmart for about 80-100$, and I've heard the same here in Japan.

You have to pay for eye tests in America and Japan :S

You only get a vision test when you buy eyewear here, not an eye health test like at a real eye doctor. The reason is that it is done by a part time worker and not a doctor, and it's pretty much always free. Some of the stores here even have do-it-yourself vision test machines that print out the prescription.

Just walk into the nearest glasses store and tell them you want to buy contacts, they probably sell both. If you want to save some money, use one of those self-checking machines, get your prescription, then order contacts over the internet.

Jarvik7 Wrote:You only get a vision test when you buy eyewear here, not an eye health test like at a real eye doctor. The reason is that it is done by a part time worker and not a doctor, and it's pretty much always free. Some of the stores here even have do-it-yourself vision test machines that print out the prescription.

Just walk into the nearest glasses store and tell them you want to buy contacts, they probably sell both. If you want to save some money, use one of those self-checking machines, get your prescription, then order contacts over the internet.

Contacts don't work that way, glasses can be done that way though. The reason is that you have to take measurements of the cornea and the shape of the eyeball to make sure the contacts fit properly. Its not a simple matter of just reading a few lines and knowing what your 2 numbers are.

EDIT: And I've already gone to one glasses store here and asked about contact exam and they said they could only do glasses. So ya... :|

The part time workers can do those measurements with the machinery too..

Even in Canada those measurements are done by the assistants while the real eye-doctor does the eye health test and the actual vision test. The measurements are not difficult to do.

It's been awhile since I lived in Osaka but I've seen a number of glasses stores that also dealt in contacts. If you want to find a real eyedoctor just search for 眼科 on google maps in a reasonably built up area like Umeda.