Girls club

I thought that it might be good to look for some networking events here in Tokyo while looking for a job. Besides it`s always nice to meet new people, even without a job search topic in mind. I came across the FEW website through a book that gives advice on life in Japan for foreign women.
FEW stands for "Foreign Executive Women" and is a business club for women in Tokyo mainly, they now have a second branch too, in Osaka I believe. Its goal is empowering foreign women in Japan in their careers and build a professional network among them. They have a meeting once a month plus some additional events.
Since the monthly meetings are a little expensive for non-members, I attended an informal drinks and pizza event at Cosmos bar which is owned by a FEW member as well. The atmosphere was really easy-going and although I knew nobody when arriving I quickly had a conversation going with several women (well, I am not taciturn either :-). It was really interesting to hear about their experiences and there were women from a variety of different backgrounds and in different positions. There were also some Japanese women who had previously worked or studied abroad. I spoke to one of them who had just recently moved back again from New York and she told me about the difficulties she faced reintegrating into a Japanese company.
The evening was great, I met some interesting and very nice women and got a few business cards. Besides I had fun and enjoyed good pizza and drinks. So I will definitely attend FEW meetings again!