So many pals coming to Japan and wow, so much to do so i made a barely legible list (onm y Dad’s ole real estate note pad) with tips and tactics accompanied by semi-useful musings with tips like:
- break it up, Japan ain’t really small so choose an area and not everywhere all at once
- packing handkerchief, small towel and trash sack in your satchel
- easy clean and care clothes and don’t dress like a schlob in tshirt and shorts
- hotels have so many amenities like pyjamas, hooray!
- JR rail passes are sorta confusing and not thrifty so much so maybe not
- domestic flight can be very handy to regional areas
- baths, onsens, sentos, bath culture Ryokans and more soakings
- get a hotel room near your arrival hotel and recover before entering the fray
- shopping for stuff is awsum: records, electronics, gadgets, toys and clothes if’n you are M-ish
- ship your bags with magic black cat, also ship your shopping items
- make a list of desired experiences and theme rather a list of places with loads of folks
- seriously, so many “minor provincial cities” where you’ll be so welcome
- picka couple smaller cities and use a hub and spoke out to side quests (yup, i give examples)
- some more stuff beyond the hype filled blah blah blah you gonna hear everywhere
I’m not selling anything and if you are my pal coming to Japan, give a ring and/or dig my web archive for loads of:
- field notes to museums cause i loooove small arty museums
- diaries about “regular usual Japan life” which is really the best part
- space out ambient train rides
I would put links to all of the above to make life easy for you but i’m gonna go soak in the bath instead
PS we live in Okayama not Okinawa or Osaka or anywhere near Tokyo – and its super great here
oh yeah, tell me what i missed and what i said which was off-side, its a conversation after all
