We're by no means seasoned pros (jozu) but we've noticed a few things that may help anyone planning on coming here. If you’re seriously thinking of sliding into the Land of the Rising sun then check these out.
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| Take my shoes off? What a croc! |
Slip on shoes: Yeah a good pair of slip on shoes – or at least shoes with very few laces. Seriously don’t under estimate the need for these. Pretty much everywhere you go you need to take your shoes off before entering and you can save your self an accumulated 7 hours a day by wearing some good sturdy slip ons. Thigh high Doctor Martins are just not appropriate I’m afraid.
Decent slippers: This is an extension of the point above. Without shoes your feet can get cold – especially in winter on the wooden floors (not everywhere has the blessed luxury of heated floors!) But the Japanese are fussy about feet and footwear so make sure they are neatish. Also presentable and lightweight as you’ll need to carry them in your baggage.
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| Yes very helpful... |
Maps: Especially for the first week or so whilst you’re getting used to communication and transpot etc. The last thing you need to do after a long flight is faff around for an hour figuring out where your hostel is. Before you leave your native country print out a map, check it out on google earth/maps. In fact Google streetview is extremely helpful in this regard. And this is obviously a gift from google that should be utilised for travel anywhere - not just Japan. If you've have an iPhone with a map app then you're golden. I 've seen these used by a few Japanese folk and they're very helpful! But remember if you don't have a swanky phone a bit of paper will do just as well - in a nutshell clue yourself up to make life easier.
Personal items: They say you should stock up on stuff like sunscreen and personal products you may not get here. But I’m not so sure about that. You just end up lugging it around with you. I brought three bottles of my fav Rexona Sport roll-on only to find it here in abundance for roughly the same price. Simply trust the Japanese, they have shiz for everything – make an adventure of it and get some new brand loyalty. The prices here are comparable.
Medicine: Medicine is obviously a bit different. You should stock up on this. Regulations say that you’re not supposed to bring more than two months worth but Hannah did. Japanese Customs is similar to a day of domestic test cricket at the Basin Reserve – you just wander in – they don’t check anything. If you’re coming in the tail end of winter or the beginning of Spring bring Warm clothes. It’s pretty much spring now and it has snowed in Tokyo, Takayama and Osaka which in generally is warmer than both. It’s biting cold - one day it was about 25 degrees – the next – old man winter was fondling my briskets with icicles at a low low 4 degrees.
Language: Kanji – one thing we didn’t do so much was clue up on Kanji charters. They say there are about 2000 Kanji used everyday – that’s on top of the 70 odd hiragana and katakana characters. For the sake of your dining experience clue yourself up on a few kanji. For example this one here 肉 is Meat or niku (I think). Do some investigation and find the kanji for chicken/tori, beef/gyu, and pork/buta. It’ll help a bit. Whilst you’re over here try to read everything. I’ve been here two weeks and starting to be able to read hiragana and katakana characters fluently. It’s a great feeling to look at a sign and be able to pronounce it. But this isn't always a genuine advantage if you don’t know what the word means.
“Hannah! Hannah! That sign says ‘kusuri’ I can read it”
“What does it mean though Bren?”
“I dunno… – but I can read it!”
Katakana is great though as it is basically spelling out English words for you. E.g サウナ - SA - U - NA. Sauna.
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| Oh really? Yeah true ow! |
Talk: Try talking to anyone. A lot of Japanese folk have learnt some English – enough for rudimentary conversation anyway. The problem is they’re shy of making an error. So often there is a mutual awkwardness. This is the exact mirror of the way we feel when we stumble through the Japanese language. The thing is everyone wants to talk. The Japanese are relieved if you try speak Japanese or if they try to speak English without you minding the errors. Just always try to melt that awkwardness barrier. Practice one bit of Japanese and nail it with them and that will make them feel at ease. Try something simple like. “Konnichiwa. Genki desu ka”. (Hello. How are you?- or more precisely – are you healthy?) After you drop that bomb you can humbly say: “watashi wa Nihon-go chotto – Nihon-go ga muzukashi” (note this is probably grammatically horrific) it means: My Japanese is little – Japanese is difficult for me. At that stage the other person may try to lock in some English and hey presto you’ve made a best mate for life. High-fives all round.
JR Rail pass: Even though our use of these was screwed up because of the incorrect visa these are still worth their weight in gold. We purchased them for about 150,000 yen. When we did the math it was going to give us the equivalent of over 240,000 yen worth of buses and trains over a 21 day period. Do the math to see the saving there. Don’t underestimate the cost of rail here. As amazing as it is, travel aint cheap – especially the shikansen (Bullet train). Also MAKE SURE YOU HAVE THE RIGHT VISA.
Chums: Before leaving – ask about and make some contacts with people in Japan. Try anything. If you can have someone in Japan especially someone born and raised (playground is where they spent most of their days) here. It will help you in your journey. They can show you the Nihon ropes, introduce you to
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| Nihon-Jin tomodachi |
others and help out with accommodation, cellphones and other stuff. Seriously unless you speak Nihon-go getting a cellphone here is a bloody mission. On top of that if anything goes wrong they can help you sort it out. For example, our trip went balls up because our JR Rail passes were invalid. We would’ve been in the schtoop had we not had our friend Izumi to take us through two hours of reschedules and rejigging. So connect with old school buddies, random strangers, that friend of a friend of a friend - anyone. So many people in Japan are friendly and want to help. They are very hospitable. We had a two-day period where we paid for nothing but a couple of train fares. We were very blessed and thankful to our gracious hosts.
Shogun by James Clavell: This is an amazing book of fiction. It gives genuine insight into a travelers exploits in the 1600s as he is engulfed by the Japanese culture. It will give you a small but worthy insight into the language and nature of Japanese communication. But more than this it gives you a really good view of Japanese cultural history. The samurai and the nature of social interactions. Even though Japan is a million miles away from the society outlined in the book – you can still see the roots and elements in today’s culture. The other day I was reading about the Captains entrance into Osaka Castle – coincidentally enough later that day I was standing in Osaka Castle. Do it – it’s a bloody good read – whether you’re in Japan or not.
So there you go a few pointers. Give us feedback if you think there is anything else that should be added.
