Going to Japan

[Funkmasterr]

So I decided to take a trip to Japan to visit my cousin who is stationed there. I am going from August 5th to 17th, and I'm really excited for it.

I figured I would see if there is anyone from vv that's been there that may have suggestions for things I may want to do/see.

[Spang]

I spent a night at the Tokyo Hilton. It had really good food.

[Sylvus]

Try the Seppuku, I hear it's to die for!


*rimshot*

[Winnow]

Buy some soiled panties from a vending machine!

[Canelek]

Buy some soiled panties from a vending machine!

True story!

Also, if you go to Osaka, you should visit Osaka Jail. It is a place you can go to have beer and hot chicks will beat you.

[Canoe]

Where in japan?

In the big cities, the night life is crazy, but be prepared for VERY CRAMPED, but VERY FUN bars

Also if you are in a hotel, I hope you are under 5 foot 2... the beds are made for 8 year olds

[Aabidano]

...but be prepared for VERY CRAMPED, but VERY FUN bars

And insanely expensive... ZOMG expensive. Japan is not a cheap place to do anything in.

I had fun there (Sasebo\Yokosuka), the people are great, there are all kinds of things to do in any of the metro areas. Just wandering through a big market is quite the experience.

It's very rarely an issue unless you're drunk or being an ass, but keep in mind that in any disagreement\issue you have with a Japanese citizen that involves the police or courts you are wrong, you will lose. Regardless of facts. So don't be an obnoxious American unless you like paying fines

[Funkmasterr]

I can't believe I don't remember what city my cousin is in.. I think it's Yokohama. He owns a house off base, so I will be staying with him the whole time.

Gonna do all the sight seeing during the day and clubs/bars and stuff every night. Rappongi (sp) is where I'm looking forward to going for night life the most from what my cousin told me.

Thanks for the ideas so far, I have some stuff in mind that would be cool to see but I don't know a lot of what to expect, to be honest.

[Bojangels]

There are a lot of thieves in Roppongi, don't get too drunk. Stay away from the Africans. Don't use your CC in bars, they will try to put all kinds of shit on there. Keep an eye on your drinks too, I'm pretty sure I got micked in a bar there once.

[Psyloche]

Keep an eye on your drinks too, I'm pretty sure I got micked in a bar there once.

Fucking floories.

[Winnow]

There are a lot of thieves in Roppongi, don't get too drunk. Stay away from the Africans. Don't use your CC in bars, they will try to put all kinds of shit on there. Keep an eye on your drinks too, I'm pretty sure I got micked in a bar there once.

What's with Nigerians in Japan?

I hate Roppongi. Never go there. Pure crap capital of the city. Why do foreigners want to spend their time with other foreigners? Why not stay in Old Blighty or the Big Apple, if that is your cup of tea?

Roppongi sucks bigtime. I avoid the place like the plague. Shinjuku and Kabukicho are much better places for enjoying life here.

BTW, since you brought this up, why are there so many Nigerians in Roppongi now, working as toots, etc, and so many have come here on tourist visas and married local girls and stayed on, over 1500 Nigerian-Japan marriages in last 10 years. One guy bragged “I got off the plane, met a girl on the streets of Tokyo the next day, and convinced her to be my girlfriend and then my wife. Japan is paradise!” (he now works in Roppongi too).

I’ll probably go there sometime just to walk around and look at the sights and messed up people, but I don’t think I want to join in. The mornings sound good. I like Shinjuku mornings, seeing the aftermath of the night before. It just seems like Roppongi is the kind of place one would hang out if one didn’t actually want to be in Japan. Boring.

[Funkmasterr]

Interesting, my cousin has been there (Japan) for like 6 years and loves going to Rappongi, I guess I'll find out which account of the place I agree with soon enough

[valryte]

Just be prepared for major culture shock Took the wife there like 7 years ago, was a cool trip, but really got hit over the heard with how little English people speak there. We were there for a little over 2 weeks. I did have a subway app on my PDA at the time that made taking the subways/trains extremely easy. But with having a cousin that has lived there for 6 years, you shouldn't have any problems. Japan is definitely one of the top countries to visit before you die.

[Bubba Grizz]

I'm sure a lot has changed since I was there in the 80's. Roppongi is the international district and also is home to Hard Rock Cafe Tokyo. It has/had a huge King Kong hanging off the side of the building. Across the street from there is a place called Pips. It's a little place to get some food. There was a dance club there called the Lexington Queen back in the day that was always packed with hot women.

I think the base your cousin is at (assuming he's Navy or Marine) is Yakusuka which is close to Yokohama. I was stationed at Yakota Air Base which is outside of Tachikawa, about an hour west of Shinjuku by train.

Like I said though all my information is based on memories from the mid 80's so a lot may have changed. One thing I know that changed is the cost. When I was there the first couple of years the yen rate was 255 to 1. That means I could spend an entire weekend in Tokyo for about $40. Now $40 will barely get you off base.

[Lalanae]

Eric & I spent our honeymoon between Tokyo & Kyoto last Fall. Saw a couple comments I totally disagree with.

First of all, everyone speaks English for the most part. In fact we were completely shocked at how people there would make a huge effort to speak English to us. We had complete strangers approach us on the trains/subways (usually elderly men) to chat with us. The people there are the most friendly & accomodating people we've met in our travels. The language barrier should be of little concern to you.

Secondly, Japan doesn't have to be expensive. We really didn't spend any more there than we did in France. Lots of the sights (temples) are free. If you are staying with someone, you don't have to worry about hotel costs, but our hotel was only a little over $100 per night at an amazing hotel next to the Imperial Palace (half the room was windowed making the most awesome view I've ever had from a hotel). I just don't understand where the "Japan is expensive" comes from, because it's not really that bad. We even found an amazing kaiten sushi place where we walked out only spending ~$20 for both of us to gorge ourselves. You'd never find good sushi that cheap in the US!

Eric & I completely fell in love with Japan. Everyone was so nice to us. The service is impeccable everywhere we went. The streets are imaculately clean. We routinely joked that we found Utopia, we were in such shock of how awesome it was. We didn't experience a lick of culture shock. We felt more comfortable there than in Europe honestly.

If you visit Tokyo, do not miss Akihabara (Electric Town) at night. If there are any local festivals going on, do not miss them. We hit a temple festival that involved a parade up to the temple. Everyone was drinking, dancing, beating on drums. A couple drunk Japanese guys drug Eric into the parade to partcipate. It was great.




If you visit Kyoto do not miss the Arashiyama Monkey Park. It honestly was the coolest place I've visited in my life. The bamboo forest nearby was pretty cool too.




Eric and I are going back next year, we loved it so much!!

[miir]

You guys finally got married?

Congrats!!!

[Lalanae]

Yeah last October Thanks

[Funkmasterr]

Thanks for the ideas lal! I'll definitely bounce those off my cousin.

I am thinking I may want to climb Mt. Fuji but he doesn't seem to be too hot on the idea. He said for us to get there we'd have to get up and head there at like 2 AM and wouldn't get back until close to midnight that night. That does seem like a bit much for one day, but I haven't decided for sure yet.

[Bubba Grizz]

It's worth the climb. I just hope they cleaned things up since the 80's. People were dumping trash there for years along the trail.

[Funkmasterr]

It's worth the climb. I just hope they cleaned things up since the 80's. People were dumping trash there for years along the trail.

Yeah I'm kinda torn about it, that would be a really long day, might take some enjoyment out of it.

[Lalanae]

At the very least, the area around Mt Fuji is nice. We wish we spent more time there. There is a complex route from Tokyo to Lake Ashi/Hakone, but it's a lot of fun. The trip itself is fun as you switch from a big train to a little train to a cable car to a ropeway...

There is an Open Air Museum along the way that was totally kickass. Basically a large sculpture garden museum. Lots of amazing modern sculptures and a beutiful view down into the valley below. They are also known for their hot spring foot bath that you can soak your feet in. That was pretty fun.

There are a couple big pirate ships that cross Lake Ashi to Hakone. The ride was a lot of fun. They serve beer Eric was pretty toasty by the time we got to Hakone.

Hakone looked really nice but we had to catch a bus back to Tokyo when we arrived. Next time we plan on staying there a little longer.

[Funkmasterr]

You guys weren't kidding about the Africans. My cousin hadn't been to Rappongi in a few years and said it didn't used to be so bad, but we were there last night and the whole night we either had one of them following us or a girl wanting to give us a massage.

Going to the haunch (spelling?) tonight, then will start more touristy stuff on Sunday. Fun so far! Tried sushi for the first time last night, liked it more than I expected I would, but then again I was pretty drunk so who knows!

[Xatrei]

For a real adventure, don't skip eating a lot of fugu at a shady, unlicensed establishment while you're there.