ryutaro's mama
Member
Thank you, good sir!
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Japan Travel |OT| One does simply not visit just once
- Thread starter hwalker84
- Start date
Thank you, good sir!
Let me know if it worked for you!
Aren't tickets a matter of walking to any of the billion convenient stores in Japan? Im surprised none of jgaf are doing it.
MikeHattsu
Member
Yes, if you know somebody in Japan they can buy them at Lawson for you. I've gotten Gromph to buy me tickets twice.
ryutaro's mama
Member
UPDATE: Got the payment invoice yesterday and the confirmation this morning. ¥2808 >>> $62 BS on the other site.
Many thanks!
SiegfriedFM
Member
There are no lunch places in Yoyogi Park, at least the part I visited. There was a little cafeteria of sorts near the station exit, but nothing more.
In Harajuku on Takeshita Street (the crazy packed street) there is a place called Tonkatsu Shotaro (I got the recommendation from here) which has pretty good curry. It's hard to find but it's opposite a clothing store called Burlesque, which is easy to spot.
Generally though, you can drop in anywhere to get a good lunch. We had some fantastic simple meals there.
Thanks! Last time the offering in Tokyo in particular was slightly overwhelming. Also your common indicators for good/bad restaurants are really not applicable. Without orientation I ended up eating too much stuff from 7-11 which is a shame really.
Sorry that this is late... just saw this today.
In Shimokitazawa I went to a concert at Club 251. Just before then my friend Paranda recommended I try this particular shop known for Gyoza... and get the crab & egg dish.
http://www.ohsho.co.jp/
http://www.ohsho.co.jp/menu/east/rice.html - top middle dish.
The gyoza came out within 30 seconds of ordering them and I had just seen the John Oliver sketch about Chinese food arriving a little TOO fast so I was laughing internally.
Good stuff, highly recommended.
In Asakusa (where I normally stay) I went to this Chinese place for XLB... ripoff... spent like nearly 5000yen and didn't enjoy the food much. http://www.asakusaimahan.co.jp/english is close to my hotel and looks impressive... didn't actually go inside.
http://nabe-zo.com/lan_en/restaurant_search_en/ is great for Shabu Shabu (AYCE with Ice Cream and Japanese Curry on the salad bar-ish area)
http://www.wako-group.co.jp/en/ is my favorite chain restaurant for Tonkatsu (those baby clams in the miso soup, I usually get two bowls...)
Japanese music producer I'm FB friends with recommended this -
http://www.geocities.jp/poem_feel/nodaiwa/ (160 year old restaurant??)
also...
I'm an expert
Formerly worldrevolution. The only reason I am nice to anyone else is to avoid being banned.
ohsho is just chinese mcdonalds, a fast food chain
I'm kinda sad that the Japanese Lawson site won't let you buy tickets with an overseas payment method. We got tickets to the crazy looking fireworks show in Sasebo from our Airbnb hostess, though it's too bad the giant projection building size Taiko no Tatsujin game is gone by then.
Is the Lawsons one itike? I bought tickets through there with my UK credit card.
MikeHattsu
Member
L-tike. You bought tickets from the Japanese part of the site, not the Ghibli Museum English version of the site?
The Cherry Blossom season depends on the weather. Usually the first week of April is a good time to go though, if you're going to Tokyo/Kyoto/etc. They bloom later if you're going to northern Japan.
You will absolutely need cash.
In my case it was for eorzea cafe but yeah, through the JP site.
MikeHattsu
Member
Ok, cool.
shira
Member
What kind of transactions are cash-only?
A lot of stores are sorta like hole in the wall or just don't take it. Anything from food to merchandise. It isn't like insanely uncommon bit I noticed it walking around.
MikeHattsu
Member
All kinds of stuff.
Transportation for one. You can use a Pasmo/Suica/etc IC card to pay for trains/subway, but you need to refill it with cash. Local buses. Taxis outside of the big cities might not accept credit cards either.
Vending machines, dining places with a meal ticket system, food stalls and souvenir stalls near temples, shrines or festivals, some convenience stores might have a minimum spending limit?, small/local stores that's not part of a chain, etc.
When I went to Japan last in 2015 I remember trying to put my ATM card in the Family Mart next to my hotel as well as a Lawson. Both specifically had lots of Japanese and then an English message saying something like "Note: If you try to withdraw money using a foreign atm card the card will not be returned to you." so 7-Eleven (or to a lesser degree, the Post Office) is my go to place since 2009 trip... A few weeks ago I was talking to someone who told me that Aeon malls recently added support for foreign ATM cards... and a few days later at the J-Pop Summit over dinner someone mentioned that now all the stores like Lawson and Family Mart have upgraded ATMs which will now work with US cards... so that might be helpful to people. We'll see in November when I'm there...
(My ticket was $398rt and I was regretting ordering because due to my work I might have issues getting the days off since we're retail and I come back on Thanksgiving day... so I was thinking I should have made it the week before as I'd have zero friction with the time off request. $300 change fee on Air China so... since I bought my ticket, LiSA, Fuki and Gacharic Spin have all announced events that weekend before and LiSA has her big concert the weekend after I leave. The only thing I'd like to do that weekend I'm there so far is a Bus Tour with Sasaki Sayaka but thats like 17500yen and I'm sure all in Japanese so either her or a fan club member who took pity on me would have to sit with me and Interpret what was going on... no thanks. If I only spoke Japanese... sigh...)
(My ticket was $398rt and I was regretting ordering because due to my work I might have issues getting the days off since we're retail and I come back on Thanksgiving day... so I was thinking I should have made it the week before as I'd have zero friction with the time off request. $300 change fee on Air China so... since I bought my ticket, LiSA, Fuki and Gacharic Spin have all announced events that weekend before and LiSA has her big concert the weekend after I leave. The only thing I'd like to do that weekend I'm there so far is a Bus Tour with Sasaki Sayaka but thats like 17500yen and I'm sure all in Japanese so either her or a fan club member who took pity on me would have to sit with me and Interpret what was going on... no thanks. If I only spoke Japanese... sigh...)
MikeHattsu
Member
Aeon ATMs have supported foreign cards since 2014. Lawson and Family Mart is still in the rollout phase of new ATM units that will support foreign cards:
http://lawson.jp/en/news/detail/1251203_3566.html
http://www.family.co.jp/topics/2016/160426_01.html
Will most likely work in bigger cities, but not yet in smaller cities or remote areas.
Boy Wander
Member
My son and I are having a blast, despite the weather being hot and sticky. People are super friendly, food is awesome, vending machines everywhere so you never go thirsty, transport is a doddle. Really, all positives from this Brit and his 11 year old partner-in-travel. In Kyoto now and done Tokyo, Miyajima and Hiroshima so far. Awesome place!
So, my flight is tomorrow and I guess I have one last question.
Typhoons!
Where I live there's no such thing, so I really have no idea what to expect - and apparently we're gonna get a big one in a couple of days.
From a safety standpoint, what am I supposed to do?
Are we basically forced to stay home until the storm ends? What if I think the storm ended and instead it's the eye of the typhoon and I'll be sent flying off to China?
As we're staying near Okachimachi, I thought we could walk down to Akiba and in case of FUD we could take shelter in some shop or something, just to make the day worth something anyway. But then again, is there the possibility of stores closing for the typhoon?
Typhoons!
Where I live there's no such thing, so I really have no idea what to expect - and apparently we're gonna get a big one in a couple of days.
From a safety standpoint, what am I supposed to do?
Are we basically forced to stay home until the storm ends? What if I think the storm ended and instead it's the eye of the typhoon and I'll be sent flying off to China?
As we're staying near Okachimachi, I thought we could walk down to Akiba and in case of FUD we could take shelter in some shop or something, just to make the day worth something anyway. But then again, is there the possibility of stores closing for the typhoon?
clem84
Gold Member
What kind of store is Mandarake? I understand at the beginning it was a used Manga and anime shop but I googled a little and looked at the wiki and it said that they stock used vhs tapes(holy cow), dvds, cds...
I'm looking for a place to find used music goods. Like used AKB48 dvds, CDs, maybe even photobooks? Anyway... Is Mandarake that kind of place? If not, anyone know what might be the best place to find these things? Thank you.
I'm looking for a place to find used music goods. Like used AKB48 dvds, CDs, maybe even photobooks? Anyway... Is Mandarake that kind of place? If not, anyone know what might be the best place to find these things? Thank you.
I went to the one in Nakano and it is everything under the sun. I think you could probably find that kind of stuff there.
I went into the Ikebukuro one as well and that was. Surprising. Should have figured by the area reputation though haha.
Just waiting for my plane home now. Had a wonderful month, my fiancee and I are exhausted and looking forward to being home but will happily be visiting again. Just fantastic. Will link her Flickr for pics once she has upped everything.
MikeHattsu
Member
Go to the idol goods Mandarake in Nakano Broadway
There's tons of stores selling AKB stuff in Akihabara though.
AnimeFantasy
Member
We had a Typhoon last Monday as well, a lot of trains stopped running and it made it somewhat difficult to move around the city if you wanted to go that route. This one is supposed to be a decent amount stronger so expect most of the same to happen. I went about 50m to the nearest store and my umbrella pretty much disintegrated so be ready for that to happen as well.
Some stores do close down, and which ones do is entirely at random. Though last week a friend of mine took shelter in a game center in Akiba for the heaviest part of the storm. Though the people here do recover pretty quickly as 30 minutes after the rain stopped the streets were flooded with people.
BTW, if you're looking for AKB48 stuff, go here in Akihabara behind the Saizeriya on the main strip -
The store's main inventory is AKB48 stuff but along the right wall as you enter is Kings Blades and all possible electronic stick variants. Their prices are 500-1000yen cheaper than most other places. They also have signs up to tell you what artists use what color. (e.g. Vocaloid - Miku = Green, Luka = Pink, Rin/Len = Yellow, etc.) so you either buy a multi-color one or specific colors for whomever you're going to see when you attend their live. Been there 3-4 times now, really nice guys there.
clem84
Gold Member
Thanks for all the replies!
I had already planned on spending a day in Akihabara so I'll definitely check that out. I'll check out Nakano broadway too.
Dammit, I -was- looking for blades there, but I didn't know about that shop and tbh Maidreamin kinda scared me away anyway. Ended up just looking through the Donkey wall o' blades. =(
Japan was amazing. Definitely my favorite city in the world now. Everything there is awesome compared to a turd of my city in NYC. Food, transportation, the amenities, smoking in restaurants, the insane amount of things to see. Bought a bunch of great gear and sneakers in Harajuku. Akihabara was interesting and awesome as well. Partying in Roppongi, Shinjuku and Kabuki-cho was omg. I really wish I could've stayed longer. Already planning my next trip and the OT title couldn't have been more right. Stay safe Japan!
Saw part of a show once, in Asakusa. I thought it was rather boring. But I did not get an English audio guide. Maybe that would have made it more interesting. Still not high on my list of things I'd do again.
Yeah, that's what I am afraid of.
I found this vintage book (in German) by a guy who was a diplomat in Japan between the world wars (so pre to early showa) describing his experiences. It's absolutely fascinating and quite poetic. One description is of a kabuki performance he attends with the young daughter of a Japanese colleague. He makes the whole thing sound absolutely incredible.
I will probably catch a single act at kabuki za.
The one thing I found interesting was, that the actors seemed to have some interaction with the audience.
Reminded me of "Kasperletheater" (puppet play for kids). Where the puppets sometimes ask the kids in the audience questions.
Something like that happened during the show. Not sure if they were actual spectators or just part of the play.
Reminded me of "Kasperletheater" (puppet play for kids). Where the puppets sometimes ask the kids in the audience questions.
Something like that happened during the show. Not sure if they were actual spectators or just part of the play.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/chiefmauskateer/collections/72157672078736375/
All pictures my fiancee took.
Hey mates!
Thanks again to everyone who gave me advice a couple months back. My trip is getting close! Now that most of my planning is done, I have some more specific questions I hope people can help me with...
Public transport - this stuff gives me massive anxiety and I'll be taking a lot of shinkansen trips. Any tips on how to use public transport easily and without having a panic attack?
Hotels - do I need to confirm them ahead of arrival? They are all fully paid for already.
Anime/manga/game merchandise - Is there a one-stop shop to look in if I'm mostly chasing character goods like stationery, fashion accessories, smaller toys/figures (Nendoroid or smaller) of IPs like Cardcaptor Sakura, Sailor Moon, Persona etc? (ie. no moe bait or anything dirty lol) From my research I'm thinking maybe Animate?
Anyone know where I can find books of ukiyo-e prints? I'm a painter and I also work at a tattoo studio where there are a lot of enthusiasts for Japanese woodblock prints, so I'd love to bring some books of these prints back! (Or the prints themselves, though that could get really expensive...)
What are some good vegetable-based dishes I can order? I'm vegan, but for this trip I think I can ignore any dashi or dairy products as I don't want to plan my whole trip around what restaurants I can eat at. Just want to be sure I don't end up ordering something that turns out to have chunks of meat in it, mostly because I don't want to offend any restaurant workers by sending a meal back or not finishing it!
Lastly, I have a crapload of tattoos! One of my friends, a tattoo artist, told me I'd be better off covering up if it's not too hot to do so, just to avoid upsetting anyone. Is there any truth to this? Or will I just get stared at a lot as a Eurasian chick with full sleeves XD
Thanks again to everyone who gave me advice a couple months back. My trip is getting close! Now that most of my planning is done, I have some more specific questions I hope people can help me with...
Public transport - this stuff gives me massive anxiety and I'll be taking a lot of shinkansen trips. Any tips on how to use public transport easily and without having a panic attack?
Hotels - do I need to confirm them ahead of arrival? They are all fully paid for already.
Anime/manga/game merchandise - Is there a one-stop shop to look in if I'm mostly chasing character goods like stationery, fashion accessories, smaller toys/figures (Nendoroid or smaller) of IPs like Cardcaptor Sakura, Sailor Moon, Persona etc? (ie. no moe bait or anything dirty lol) From my research I'm thinking maybe Animate?
Anyone know where I can find books of ukiyo-e prints? I'm a painter and I also work at a tattoo studio where there are a lot of enthusiasts for Japanese woodblock prints, so I'd love to bring some books of these prints back! (Or the prints themselves, though that could get really expensive...)
What are some good vegetable-based dishes I can order? I'm vegan, but for this trip I think I can ignore any dashi or dairy products as I don't want to plan my whole trip around what restaurants I can eat at. Just want to be sure I don't end up ordering something that turns out to have chunks of meat in it, mostly because I don't want to offend any restaurant workers by sending a meal back or not finishing it!
Lastly, I have a crapload of tattoos! One of my friends, a tattoo artist, told me I'd be better off covering up if it's not too hot to do so, just to avoid upsetting anyone. Is there any truth to this? Or will I just get stared at a lot as a Eurasian chick with full sleeves XD
MikeHattsu
Member
Use hyperdia, and if you're still unsure of anything just ask the station attendants and don't worry too much ;P
Nah.
Check Mandarake in Nakano Broadway. They got a separate magical girl goods store and everything.
Animate/Gamers/etc mostly carry recent goods or goods for the most popular shows.
Go to book town in Tokyo:
http://en.japantravel.com/tokyo/book-town-in-jimbocho/5518
It's only required (for tourists) if you go to certain onsens, swimming pools, water parks or similar. If you're able to be mistaken for a Japanese person, it might be a bit more troublesome though.
catpurrcat
Member
+1 I went on my own 10 years ago with no internet no language skills and just paper maps. It was perfectly fine. In fact, in kyoto, an old man with his friends saw me coming out of a station at night in the rain and walked me back to my hotel using a faster route, shielding me with umbrellas (they spoke like 5% english and were 12 inches shorter in height, lol).
Outside of rush hour, people were extremely helpful. There was also an english speaking staff person at the train station (literally marked as such at the info booth). I hope that is still there!!!
MikeHattsu, if this thread were a shrine you would be its deity! Thanks again for all the help
Haha, I guess I'll see what happens. I'm no judge of my own appearance but I think I look white to Asians, and Asian to white people :V
Aww, that's a nice story! I hope that I can experience some of that much spoken-of Japanese hospitality. My greatest fear is accidentally offending or upsetting any local people...I can be very socially awkward >_<;+1 I went on my own 10 years ago with no internet no language skills and just paper maps. It was perfectly fine. In fact, in kyoto, an old man with his friends saw me coming out of a station at night in the rain and walked me back to my hotel using a faster route, shielding me with umbrellas (they spoke like 5% english and were 12 inches shorter in height, lol).
Outside of rush hour, people were extremely helpful. There was also an english speaking staff person at the train station (literally marked as such at the info booth). I hope that is still there!!!
By the way, how should we go about parking bikes if we end up renting some during our trip to move around town? I've heard that parking them near stations is a big ダメ, but we'd probably rather park them at places that would allow us to do so for free if possible. Is there any kind of keyword we could use to search for any places like that in Google Maps or something?
Owlowiscious
Member
Any tips for big sight / comiket? We are going in December and using air bnb and maybe a shibuya or akihabara station for where to stay. We also plan on spending a lot of time in akihabara
MikeHattsu
Member
Tsukiji fish market relocation has been suspended:
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/20...shy-koike-puts-tsukiji-move-ice/#.V8a_vCmKQ-U
Prepare for massive crowds. Try to look up anything you'd want to get beforehand and get the booth number.
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/20...shy-koike-puts-tsukiji-move-ice/#.V8a_vCmKQ-U
Prepare for massive crowds. Try to look up anything you'd want to get beforehand and get the booth number.
Prepare for massive crowds. Try to look up anything you'd want to get beforehand and get the booth number.
Yep, this. I went to C89 in December and making sure you have all your booth numbers straight ahead of time is an absolute must. For C90 I had a proxy out there instead, but I bought the physical book catalog which is really nice for planning also. Currently planning to go back for C93! Despite being a huuuuuuuuge crowd, everything was really organized and no problem at all for this almost-no-JP-language-skill gaijin.
I was staying in Shibuya for that trip and while the train out there wasn't bad, the earlier you can get there the better for the high-demand stuff.
Mononoaware
Banned
Hey folks, it took a while to find this thread even with the gaf search function. lol
I have been trying to get a trip to Japan off the ground for a while, and the opportunity has finally opened up where I can afford to go. Thing is, school is starting up again now, and I can't do it right away. Normally I say I'll do it next summer, but whenever I put things off that long, they never happen. I do have the shorter winter break though...Would going to Japan in Winter time-ish during New Years be a good idea?
I did read someplace that one of the benefits of going this time of year, is there's less people traveling during this time, so there aren't as many other tourists. Also New Years is a big holiday in Japan, so there may some interesting places to go. I was thinking about staying 1-2 weeks, unsure exactly how long yet.
Would love some input and advice, because I've never traveled out of the country, and will probably be going alone. A friend of mine has long suggested staying as hostels, so I am thinking of going that route for places to stay. I would like to spend sometime in Tokyo, and in Kyoto.
I have been trying to get a trip to Japan off the ground for a while, and the opportunity has finally opened up where I can afford to go. Thing is, school is starting up again now, and I can't do it right away. Normally I say I'll do it next summer, but whenever I put things off that long, they never happen. I do have the shorter winter break though...Would going to Japan in Winter time-ish during New Years be a good idea?
I did read someplace that one of the benefits of going this time of year, is there's less people traveling during this time, so there aren't as many other tourists. Also New Years is a big holiday in Japan, so there may some interesting places to go. I was thinking about staying 1-2 weeks, unsure exactly how long yet.
Would love some input and advice, because I've never traveled out of the country, and will probably be going alone. A friend of mine has long suggested staying as hostels, so I am thinking of going that route for places to stay. I would like to spend sometime in Tokyo, and in Kyoto.
Cant really comment on traveling in winter though pics of Japan in snow look incredible.
I can recommend hostels though. The ones I've been to have been fantastic with pretty high standards. Value for money is off the charts especially in Tokyo and Kyoto where hotels are quite pricy imo.
I'd always treat myself to a couple of nights in a nice Ryokan though.
I can recommend hostels though. The ones I've been to have been fantastic with pretty high standards. Value for money is off the charts especially in Tokyo and Kyoto where hotels are quite pricy imo.
I'd always treat myself to a couple of nights in a nice Ryokan though.