Originally Posted by
ksandness
I have shipped things back from Japan, especially during long-term stays. The easiest way is to buy a shipping kit from a stationery store, since (at least the last time I did it), the Japanese post office officials are fussy about how you wrap your packages.
As for the expense, I don't remember it being out of line. Now the UK is another matter...
My experience with the post office I use most for this is the opposite -- they will sell me a shipping box/envelope and then go to great lengths (despite language issues) to help me through the process, if they don't like how I did it, they re-do it for me.
The one question they always know to ask in English is, "Is there also a letter in the box?" The only right answer is "no" regardless of what is in there, apparently it significantly increases the cost. They won't check, all they want is the correct answer to the question.