Has anyone been to Japan? Tips?

[Freckle Face Farm]

My daughter live in Japan right now!!!! She is at yokota air base..Mount fugi...It is HOT HOT HOT!!!She has be complaining of the heat...Dont worry your son will be fine I am sure they will give him a course on how to interact with the japanise...

If you want to know anything let me know I will ask her..She has been there since middel January..She loves it and says it is Beautiful..It will be a great experiance for your son..

Hope he enjoys it as much as she is...

 

[The Chicken Lady]

Tell him to go with an open mind. Other countries are not "better" or "worse" than the U.S., just different, and I think that sometimes Americans can come across as somewhat arrogant or clueless when traveling abroad. If he respects their culture and follows the "dos" and "don'ts" when he visits there, he'll learn a lot and have a great experience.

The people who go to other countries and expect things to be just like in their home country are the ones who don't enjoy their trip.

 

[ruth]

Quote:
This is so true - I see it often. Favorite stories - DH and I were in Venice, Italy for a week. For those that don't know, the Italians aren't big on breakfast - croissant and coffee is about it - their main meals are lunch and dinner. Anyway, we were in line at a deli behind another American couple. Suddenly the man starts screaming "I want, bacon, and eggs, and sausage for breakfast. Why can't I find that anywhere in this stupid country?" Needless to say, like most Americans, he was extremely overweight, loudmouthed, and wanted his big American breakfast and darn it, they needed to speak English also.

Same trip - we're sitting at a little outside restaurant. A group of American couples walks by and one woman stops to read the menu (all restaurants have menus posted outside). Wife shouts in loud voice, for the rest of the group who had kept walking "Hey, they have lasagna here." We haven't stopped laughing about that one yet cause hey, guess what, every single place in Venice serves lasagna - how about trying all the other great Italian dishes.

As has been posted, when travelling abroad -expand your horizons - try new things - eat the local foods.

 

[sonew123]

Quote:
My aunt in law is From japan and she went there last year to visit her mother...she hadn't been "home" in years. They went to a diner-restaurant and teh coffee was 6$ american dollars a cup-no free refills 6$ per cup. She said she thought it was so expensive and I can see why-that trip cost her 1000's more than anticipated!

 

[NRacine]

I will have a grad student visiting from Osaka in 2 weeks. I will ask him for some advice for you.

One thing I did notice when he was here last, it's very rude for Japanese people to say no...to anything. They will always say yes if you ask them to do something, or if they like something. But, there seem to be different degrees of "yes" so you have to pay attention and try to determine what they really mean. It is quite difficult.

 

[JennsPeeps]

Sharon, just sent you a copy of the tour book my students created for their recent trip to Tokyo, Hiroshima, & Kyoto.

My personal advice:

1. Leave the passport in the hotel safe. Make a photocopy & use that while outside of the hotel (unless it's required for a visit/trip). If any officials REALLY need to see your passport, they'll make sure you get to the hotel to retrieve it.

2. Don't travel with anything that you can't live without. If it gets stolen or lost, you'll have to live without it.

3. Leave the iPod in the hotel or at home. Situational awareness is key for safe travel (traffic, pick pockets, bicyclists, etc.).

4. Try things that take you outside of your normal life: foods, situations, places, etc. Americans who travel overseas and eat American food, visit English-only establishments, & the like... shouldn't bother traveling. Be prepared to be uncomfortable and be OK with it. Different cultures have different views on what's normal. Eat the scary thing on your plate. Sit on the floor. Listen to the foreign language and enjoy it. This is the stuff of life.

5. Print pics as soon as you get home. If you don't create a journal/album within a month, you never will.

 

[Justino]

oh ur kids lucky

ive been wanting to go to Japan for YEARS!

 

[AussieSharon]

Thank you for the wonderful responses. I'll have my son read them as soon as he is finished his homework. And Jenn THANK you so much for all the info you emailed me! Also, I'm SO glad to know about the toilet paper!

He will be going with a delegation from Virginia that will be meeting with 3 other delegations when they arrive in Japan. 2 from Illinois and 1 from California. So there will be about 40 kids traveling with 4 - 5 teachers and a Japanese Delegation Leader who will be with them the entire 2 weeks they are in Japan. The schedule is already made for them and they basically just have to stay as a group and be on time the entire 2 weeks.

Here is their schedule for anyone who is interested. Sorry, its LONG!


July 5 – July 18, 2009

DAY 1 – Sunday, July 5
Depart for Tokyo, Japan
• Greet your fellow Ambassadors in your departure city before boarding your international flight to Japan.

DAY 2 – Monday, July 6
Tokyo, Japan
• Meet your Delegation Manager upon arrival at the Narita airport
• Welcome to Tokyo, the Capital of Japan
• We suggest that you exchange money for your entire Japan program when you arrive at the airport. ATM’s are very difficult to locate in Japan and you won’t have a better chance than right now to get your Yen. Additionally, using a credit card is very limited as most stores only accept cash.

DAY 3 - Tuesday, July 7
Tokyo, Japan
• Begin your discovery of Japan by visiting the Imperial Palace Plaza where you will be able to catch a glimpse of the palace and the picturesque Nijubashi Bridge.
• Visit the observation deck of Tokyo Metropolitan Government Offices in Shinjuku, located on the 45th floor. On a clear day, you have a spectacular view of not only the city but also Mt. Fuji.
• Investigate the Meiji Shrine; a Shinto Shrine dedicated to Emperor Meiji and his wife Empress Shoken, the great-grandparents of the present emperor.
• Discover the legendary Oriental Bazaar in Omotesando, Harajuku district. Enjoy the afternoon collecting souvenirs or browsing the trendy shops, which shed light on the fashion styles of the Japanese youth.

DAY 4 – Wednesday, July 8
Tokyo, Japan
• Experience an activity related to Japanese Anime. Anime is one of the largest industries in Japan.
• Browse your way from the street toward the Asakusa Kannon Temple as you travel through the picturesque Nakamise shopping arcade, one of the oldest shopping streets in all of Japan.

DAY 5 – Thursday, July 9
Hakone, Japan
• Escape the city and enjoy the scenic drive to Mt. Fuji’s Fifth Station, the highest point accessible by motor vehicles, sometimes called “the boundary between heaven and earth” because it lies above the level of the clouds.
• Enjoy soft trekking on Mt. Fuji or the surrounding area, weather permitting
• Please note: You must stay on the trail while trekking at Mt. Fuji. Deviations from this trail are not permitted.
• Take a scenic aerial cable car ride up Mt. Komagatake in Hakone National Park, weather permitting.
• You will spend the night in Hakone. This will be your first opportunity to try the Onsen, a public bath made of hot springs.

DAY 6 – Friday, July 10
Gokayama, Japan
• Today, you will head to Gokayama where you will have an opportunity to interact with local people.
• Gokayama is part of the World Heritage List.
• The town is comprised of two hamlets of farmhouses with steep thatched roofs. These roofs are designed as a countermeasure against the region’s heavy snowfall. The roofs are described as “gassho-zukuri”, which translates to “the hand clasped-in-prayer-style”
• Spend your next three nights in these traditional houses.
.
DAY 7 – Saturday, July 11
Gokayama, Japan
• Enjoy interaction with local people, and local activities.
• Be sure to journal about some of your experiences.

DAY 8 – Sunday, July 12
Gokayama, Japan
• Enjoy local activities.
• Be sure to journal about some of your experiences.

DAY 9 –Monday, July 13
Takayama, Japan
• Don’t forget to say “Sayonara (bye!) and Arigato! (Thank you!)” to the people of town.
• Today your journey takes you to the Takayama area. If the weather is clear, grand view of mountains and beautiful trees and other alpine plants can be seen along the way.
• Spend your night at a Minshuku, a traditional Japanese inn of the Takayama area.
• Spend this night at a Minshuku; a traditional Japanese inn common to the
Takayama and Gifu area.

DAY 10 – Tuesday, July 14
Takayama, Japan
• Venture to the old-fashioned city of Takayama. Explore the morning market where you can find local fresh vegetables, fruits, mountain vegetables, and so on.
• Takayama has many colorful and culturally significant sites such as Kami
Sannomachi town. This area is known for its narrow streets and beautiful, oldfashioned wooden Japanese houses. Despite the many souvenir shops, you will feel like you’ve gone back in time to an older Japan.
• The Takayama Jinya is the only "jinya," or regional headquarters of the
Tokugawa Shogunate, that has survived to this day.
• Explore the Festival Floats Exhibition Hall features the huge floats, decorated with intricate carvings, gilded wood, and detailed metalwork, that are paraded through streets during the Hachiman Festival in Takayama in autumn

DAY 11 – Wednesday, July 15
Hiroshima, Japan
• Take the JR Shinkansen train, or super-express train to Hiroshima.
• Spend a solemn afternoon in Hiroshima reflecting on the destruction of WWII at Peace Memorial Park. The Peace Memorial Museum is a powerful and moving reminder of the destruction the atomic bomb left behind on August 6, 1945.
• Make a vow of peace as you leave your own origami paper crane at Sadako’s monument.

DAY 12 – Thursday, July 16
Kyoto, Japan
• Take a ferry to Miyajima Island, home of Itsukushima Shrine. On the island, walk to the vermilion Itsukushima Shrine, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, to see the Grand Torii gate which looks as if it is floating at high tide.
• Head to Kyoto, where you spend 2 nights at the former capital of Japan, famous worldwide for its temples and shrines. Kyoto was the center of politics and culture for 1,100 years.

DAY 13 – Friday, July 17
Kyoto, Japan
• View one of Japan’s treasures at the Kinkakuji Temple, better known as the Gold Pavilion. This World Heritage temple is covered in gold leaf and topped by a bronze roof.Step back in time to discover Nijo Castle, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The castle floors are equipped with a type of alert system; the famous Uguisu-Bari or Nightingale Floor, constructed to "sing" at every footstep.
• Enjoy a hands-on experience of one of the core classic Japanese arts; the Tea Ceremony, Calligraphy, or Kyogen Dance.
• Watch carefully and you may be lucky enough to see a geisha as you walk along the ancient streets of the Gion district.

DAY 14 – Saturday, July 18
Depart for US
• Pack up your suitcase for the last time and board the coach for the airport.
• If your flight schedule permits you may have the opportunity to visit the
Sanjusangendo Temple.
• Don’t forget to thank your Delegation Manager before departing the motorcoach for your flight back home

 

[okiron]

They're going to Hiroshima but not stopping by Miyajima? Weak!

 

[AussieSharon]

Quote:
Yes they are going there on day 12