The Japan Trip Resource Thread!

[kryss]

Tim Rogers, who does the column from Japan in GamesTM has written on Kotaku a massive article why he's fallen out of love with living in Japan.

He seemed fine when I met him a few years back, if a little hard up.

It makes interesting reading, even if it seems like an extended irk post!

It's all true. I still miss living there though.

[sj33]

Long sleeve shirt is fine. Darwock is right though, when I start looking for a new job this may impact it not sure. But private Onsens are o.k. Tattoos are frowned upon here and I get strange looks/comments about, "did I do it myself", i"s it pen/Yakuza" etc. I have 7 up my left arm. As long as I wear a long sleeve shirt its fine. I have a friend who works for NamcoBandai. At the interview they asked if he had tattoos he said yes and it was fine, the company said a short sleeve shirt is k, but he chose to wear a long sleeve as not to offend.

Various other friends have big tattoos on their back. Plus one person I know has one on his finger!! He still got a job, so it should be o.k. I need to cover mine for parties with my school sometimes as they may offend. My missus hates them too and says Japanese people will get a negative image before you even speak to them. I think the key is if they are visible at work but this is the same in England too.

Sounds like it might be best to scrap the tattoo idea, as much as I want to do it. I don't really understand why people get tattoos that people can't see, I'd be getting a tattoo on the lower half of my arm simply because I tend to wear short-sleeved shirts so it'd be visible. If it can't be seen, it might as well not be there at all.

I'm expecting a bit of a non-literal arse-kicking for a while once I get to Japan, just getting used to things, and getting used to the fact that I'm gonna stand out a mile away. I'm not very confident in my conversation ability either (that's the purpose of the year abroad).

[r3z]

Heh, well whaddya know?

Apparently the J-League is taking a 2 month break in mid May because of the World Cup.

Guess no game for me.

When are you going exactly? FC Tokyo are at home on 15th. They have a cup game on 22nd as well but not at Aijinomoto.

http://www.j-league.or.jp/data/view.php?d=news&t=monthly&m=05&y=2010&l=E

Urawa also have a home cup game on 26th but it is at their old/2nd string stadium also (my friend's dad actually claims the atmosphere there is better than at Saitama Stadium but it's hard to believe!).

[JU!]

Sounds like it might be best to scrap the tattoo idea, as much as I want to do it. I don't really understand why people get tattoos that people can't see, I'd be getting a tattoo on the lower half of my arm simply because I tend to wear short-sleeved shirts so it'd be visible. If it can't be seen, it might as well not be there at all.

I'm expecting a bit of a non-literal arse-kicking for a while once I get to Japan, just getting used to things, and getting used to the fact that I'm gonna stand out a mile away. I'm not very confident in my conversation ability either (that's the purpose of the year abroad).

Still get the tattoo mate you should not worry what people think. My missus and co workers gave me a right ear bashing before I got my 1st, just ignore it. It`s up to you what you do, you should not worry what people think. I just wear long sleeve at work rest of the time I wear short sleeve stuff. You`ll be k in Japan, I know peeps here who speak no Japanese at all and manage fine. If you were in the countryside this would be difficult city is fine I think.

[randombs]

I'm expecting a bit of a non-literal arse-kicking for a while once I get to Japan, just getting used to things, and getting used to the fact that I'm gonna stand out a mile away. I'm not very confident in my conversation ability either (that's the purpose of the year abroad).

Get that tat, show them who's boss! You'll stand out anyway, tattoo or no tattoo, so I wouldn't worry about it. Maybe get a Gundam one to make people happy.

And I'm sure your conversation ability is just fine. I know about ten words but I'm a chatty git so I string them together like a beast and people think I'm better than I am, but my friends figured that out soon enough.

You know so much more that, and once you're over the confidence hurdle, you'll be a star.

When I was first there, I used random supermarkets and shops to help overcome my speaking fears. They're places where your face will be easily forgotten unless you do something profound, so you can afford to get embarrassed.

You'll figure out whether you prefer mucking stuff up in front of friends or total strangers, and can then work on it appropriately

[kryss]

Don't expect people to think outside the box though! I was in KFC one day and the wife didn't want any ice in her drink. I couldn't remember the word for ice ("koori" btw) so I told the girl behind the counter that I didn't want any cold, hard water. "Blank" is how I would describe her expression. I had to pull out my dictionary and look it up.

[teddymeow]

We were at the Cold Stone Creamery in Ikebukuro last year and the (very friendly) teen staff behind the counter latched onto the fact that we were speaking English and asked:

"Where are you from?" perfectly.

Having done a single, beginners term in Japanese we thought we'd give some of our basics a flex:

"Igirisu-jin desu" we replied.

Cue the highest shriek of delight from the girl as she started to speak sooo fast in Japanese as we stood there not understanding a single word. I finally managed to utter:

"Gomen, wakarimasen. Watashi no Nihongo wa warui desu".

The expressions we had while the girl was speaking, that would be my definition of blank.

[Darwock]

Don't expect people to think outside the box though! I was in KFC one day and the wife didn't want any ice in her drink. I couldn't remember the word for ice ("koori" btw) so I told the girl behind the counter that I didn't want any cold, hard water. "Blank" is how I would describe her expression. I had to pull out my dictionary and look it up.

Ha, that reminds me of a friend of mine - we were going to an all day punk gig and as he did web lessons he was worried about his hearing, so he wanted to get some ear plugs.

Went into a 100 yen store, straight up to the counter and said (in Japanese) "big sounds are scary". Then just waited for a response lol

[Darwock]

Tim Rogers, who does the column from Japan in GamesTM has written on Kotaku a massive article why he's fallen out of love with living in Japan.

He seemed fine when I met him a few years back, if a little hard up.

It makes interesting reading, even if it seems like an extended irk post!

Jesus, that article is incredibly long! I gave up after three full essays worth when I noticed I was only 20% down the page.

However I couldn't agree more with the points about anime (now ashamed to have ever been interested in it) and mandatory parties.

And while I'm not a vegetarian, the story about the guy who claimed that bacon was not meat is entirely too believable. I think Japan teaches it's own version of science in schools (not just history) where all the rules are different.

[doodledude]

Just booked my flights last night. Off to Japan on the 23rd March for 2 weeks and then to Oz for 3 weeks... can't wait.
Plan on staying in Tokyo for 3-4 days then bullet train to Kyoto for 3-4 days then maybe Osaka 2-3 days and then back to Tokyo for 3 days.
Is it wise to book hotels beforehand? I'm planning on booking some later on this evening.

[neoboy259]

Oh I'd definitely book hotels beforehand. You dont need the added stress of not knowing surely?

[Darwock]

I didn't book hotels on my first visit because I wanted 100% freedom, but I also enjoy that kind of adventure. I realise it's not for everyone, but it's do-able. Especially as there are business hotels everywhere, not to mention the last resort love hotels (can't be booked in advance so you're always in with a shot)

[QualityChimp]

Ha ha ha! Great stories!

When I first arrived, we were looking for our first hotel and I asked this old guy with a hi-viz construction vest on in basic Japanese - "where is this hotel?" and pointed to the picture. He just walked away waving his hands and shaking his head whilst muttering. I was gutted.

The hotel was 1 minute's walk away...

When we went to Iga Ueno's Ninja Museum, we got a bit lost and asked these two girls "where is the ninja?". They looked at each other and went "NINJA?!?!" then beckoned us to follow. 30 seconds later, they changed their minds and took us back the other way!

We found it in the end. It was hiding in a farmhouse.

Another time, this crazy vagrant bag lady came up to us in a train station and started laughing at us. Even I could pick up phrases like "Gaijin" and charades to say we have big noses.

Finally, in Osaka I spent about 5 minutes with a waitress carefully ordering for our party "2 of those here, 3 of those over there" etc. only for her to say afterwards "certainly sir, I'll order those right away"! She could've said earlier that she spoke English!

[doodledude]

Oh I'd definitely book hotels beforehand. You dont need the added stress of not knowing surely?

I like the idea of the freedom, but as I'm going to struggle with the language the hassle of trying to find hotels when I arrive is not something I fancy.
I might leave a couple of days open to see whats around, as we fancy going trying those capsule hotels. Anyone tried them?
Would like to give it a go if there not too bad, and I think you can just turn up as well from the little I've read. A lot seem to have communal baths, where as I'd rather have showers as well.

[QualityChimp]

We booked everywhere in advance apart from the capsule hotel in Fukuoka, which my friend living there sorted out.

It can be a bit overwhelming in a country where most people don't speak fluent English and most the signs are impossible to read too, so having a confirmed base of operations and somewhere you know you can crash to, is a good idea.

I love a bit of adventure too and plenty of our trips out were adventures in themselves, but knowing we had a hotel room waiting was great to know and one less thing to think about. Who wants to spend precious holiday time going from hotel to hotel looking for rooms?

That's just my take on it! Trip Advisor should be helpful.

As for the capsule hotel, it was great fun and worth experiencing. Being in the capsule was fun and my feet didn't stick out the end like I expected but loads of people set alarms for really early in the morning but had already left so prepare to be woken up. On the plus side, I had the baths practically to myself. It was a bit nudey-dudey for my liking, but it was a chance to show them what a real man looks like...

I'm getting itchy feet to go again after reading this thread!