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Forum - View topicHelp Me Plan my First Trip to Japan!
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PlayBoi
Posts: 119 Location: Cali |
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Well theres really not a forum to post this in so hopefully its fine I post it here
Ok first tha side story, not a required read to help me [ Well visiting Japan is one of my life long dreams and finally for tha first time Ill have tha finances to make tha trip. I recently wrecked my car on my way to see Last Samurai with a friend. We hit black ice and luckly we didn't go off tha mountain but veared into tha embankment. The car flip and slid 50 feet but luckly neither of us were hurt and tha car was totaled. So ill be receiving $6,250 in about a week. I plan on buying a new piece-of-junk car for like $500 and saving tha rest to go to Japan and China for a week each. My other friend that will be going with me is selling his car for 16,000 and also be getting a beater car because he's tired of having a car he has to "baby".] Ok with that said I need some help. First, what is tha best time of season to visit Japan (China)? I was hoping to see tha cherry blossoms in bloom but if they bloom in spring like most everything eles thats most likely out of tha question. So Im thinkin mabey goin somewhere around August I dont want tha weather to be too hot but more so too cold. Second, any addition info about going on a trip to Japan/China would help like tha best way to stay while visting ( I saw online you can do things like stay with a family for pretty cheap), Places to visit, best way to get around, how to survive without knowing Japanese but a few select words I learned watching anime ( the basics like idiot, thank you, and (im) sorry), ect. Thanks for any help in advance. |
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Goshin
 Posts: 288 Location: Illinois |
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My suggestion is that you learn just a *little bit more about the language other than what you heard from anime. *Sarcasm,you need to know more then just a little |
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Inu-Yasha
 Posts: 373 Location: Quad Cities, Iowa |
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I've never been outside of the USA but I defintely recommend traveling with a translator if you can afford it(I have no idea how expensive they are). I hope you know the majority of the customs and whatnot of the Japanese culture, you don't want to accidently offend anyone by mistake....
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PlayBoi
Posts: 119 Location: Cali |
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LOL ya Im gonna have to work on that 
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PlayBoi
Posts: 119 Location: Cali |
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Cant cover tha cost but certainly would be nice..I was thinking mabey I could find a tour group to tag along with to get around tha basics of visting and then wonder off and see tha sites then wonder back for dinner 
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lianncoop
Past ANN Contributor
 Posts: 1705 Location: Indiana |
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This post has "Cookie" written all over it. Perhaps he can just cut and paste info from his other threads he's responded to about traveling to Japan.
The cherry blossoms are in what, April/May? It gets hot in the summer, like incredibly humid/hot. August probably wouldn't be too bad.
I would suggest travel books/guides/ internet. If you're going as a casual tourist, there's plenty of tourist info.
Many of the regular touristy sites, I believe have Japanese college students who want to learn english. I think they "guide" American tourists around the sites in order to better learn English. (Or so my dad says...he goes to Japan once or twice a year for conferences...) If you end up going, make sure you go to Nara and visit Deer Park. 
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mrgazpacho
Posts: 316 Location: Australia |
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Um, tours are relatively expensive. That said, I expect the PopJapanTravel tours to be good for a first-timer. Mucho discussion over at the AnimeOnDVD forms about these tours.
If you get a standard guidebook (e.g. Lonely Planet) you can hit the big tourist cities (Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, Hiroshima, etc.) by yourselves with almost no Japanese because many signs (esp. the train stations) will have some English. Food can be point-and-shoot, er, eat. It sounds like you have more Japanese than I do, and I've been there 3 times and had lots of fun 
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mrgazpacho
Posts: 316 Location: Australia |
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Someone over at rec.travel.asia just posted that she expects them to be in full bloom in Tokyo this weekend. I hope they hold off until Thursday, which is when I touch down
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Cheesemon
Guest
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Well, unless you take a professional course, learning Japanese can be a bit difficult. It might not be necessary though, as most hotel and restaurant staff know basic English, and for buying and selling, you just talk with your money. :) Might wanna bring a pocket survival guide though . . .
Maybe it's best to just hook up with a tour group like all the other foreigners do, as they know the best places to go and you won't have to worry about getting lost . . . as much. :) But make sure you visit a small town/village at least once because that's where all the good scenery, culture and clean air/water is. :) Oh, and August is HOT and HUMID. Bring antiperspirant and sunblock. Good luck! |
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PlayBoi
Posts: 119 Location: Cali |
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Thanks for all tha replies so far...they are quite funny and helpful
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gnollman
 Posts: 535 Location: Richmond, KY |
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August is most certainly extremely hot, humid, and EVIL. Especially when you consider the relative scarcity of air conditioning in Japan....
That said, though, Japan is certainly beautiful in the summer. I recommend going to visit mountain shrines in the summer.... It is very nice to get out of the city in the summer. I would also recommend that you try to keep to the trains and buses. Japanese taxis are notoriously expensive... Kyoto is a beautiful place in the summer. If you go, one place you must go is Kiyomizu-dera. Love that place.... As far as the language goes, I would say that you definitely need some survival Japanese. Carry a pocket dictionary or phrase book, for certain. Tokyo is surviveable for a person of low Japanese skill, as is Kyoto and Osaka to some lesser degree. If you get into too much trouble, though, I would recommend that you find a younger person to try to talk to.... they're more likely to respond than an older person. But just remember... if they don't understand you, speaking slower and louder is not going to make them understand you any better... |
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PlayBoi
Posts: 119 Location: Cali |
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Yah that would go well a 6' 1 caucasian American yelling at children  thanks for tha tips and yah I think my best bet for my first time is sticking to tha larger cities Ill look it tha place you mentioned.
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Inu-Yasha
Posts: 373 Location: Quad Cities, Iowa |
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I've heard rumors that the Japanese mafia is very strong so don't mess with them man...spoiler[ This is my feeble attempt at sarcasm by the way in no way am I an expert on the mafia lol ]
Anyway other than side note, doesn't the majority of all Japanese have English as a second langange or have something else for foreign language? |
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HeeroYuy135
Posts: 150 Location: Sacramento, CA, USA |
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I think so...after all, they do teach Japanese and English in Japanese schools...
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king_micah
 Posts: 994 Location: OSU |
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As for China, pick a specific Area to go to. Like Beijing, and then sites you want. You really do need some sort of tour for China, as it is not a main destination with as much help as Japan. I suggest HK as a good place, but if you get a travel agent, Beijing is wonderful. An agent is the best way, as they can help with Visas, which would otherwise be a mess for the PRC, which does require Visas, unlike most places.
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