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Travelling Japan alone, without an organized tour or the help of people who speak the language is not for the faint of heart. Rather, it is for those who savour adventure, like me. Getting into all kinds of predicaments is part of the fun, and in my mind, one of the best ways to explore and learn the culture and customs of a foreign country. Much of what I have to say here stems directly from my my two trips to Japan. In this section you can learn about
After spending countless hours studying the language, I've come to the conclusion that in order to master it, one must live in Japan. Japanese is not a language to be learned in isolation. Think you can get by, by listening to a few tapes before your arrival? Think again! The only people I know who have any decent command of Japanese are those who have spent time there. If you study Japanese without contact with native speakers - even for years - you'll be rudely suprised once you arrive in Japan and try to understand the first thing said to you. Like when you try to order your first meal. But take comfort. The same thing applies to the Japanese when it comes to learning English. The only Japanese who seemed to have any conversant ability in English were those who either attended an English school or travelled abroad. It was obvious! That's why I had to use whatever Japanese I had, so often!
When I saw this sign on my bed at Hotel Kansai:
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You may immediately notice from these example that the Japanese do not put spaces between their words. Whose idea was that anyway??? Except in the simplest of cases, this would drive me nuts! I would spend lots more time than I should have to just to parse out basic phrases before I could even use my dictionary. Sometimes trial and error was the only solution!
Despite what others say, I strongly suggest you master Katakana before Hiragana and of course Kanji. That is because anywhere you go, there are so many signs in Katakana. There are a lot of English words that the Japanese have borrowed, and these are all written out in Katakana. So if you are a native English speaker, you can often guess the meaning. Of course the pronounciation has been modified in most cases to suit the Japanese, but if you sound out the word slowly, you can usually get it.
However if you hear such words in conversation for the first time, chances are it will just sound like more Japanese. I found the Japanese usually have bungled up the prounciation so much that I think I've heard yet another unfamiliar Japanese word, especially when taken out of context. For example in a restaurant they asked me buy a ticket from a vending machine to order my dinner. Well, who ever heard of doing that? So naturally the word for ticket in this case (Chiketto) was totally lost on me.
Hiragana on the other hand spells out Japanese words (or worse, parts of Japanese words when it's mixed in with Kanji) so you have to have a reasonable command of the language to get the meaning. Of course it is good to know too, as many food items are written out in Hiragana, but learn the Katakana first. I found Hiragana to be most useful when it was not mixed in with any Kanji. Unfortunately in most cases it is, so unless the Kanji was sparse and simple, the meaning of the whole sentence was confusing.
With over 2000 Kanji characters in common use, you'll need a lot of time to master this and one hell of a good memory!
The people respect authority, take responsibility for their own actions, and live by the accepted rules and customs, which is why these cities are very safe compared to US standards. Rebellion isn't common, though it is seen in the younger generation from time to time.
I found the people very friendly and helpful for the most part.
Communicating with them for directions and such can be a challenge, but
the average person is usually patient and willing to help. Even if
they don't know, they won't admit it and will try to help anyway.
Pretty much the worst that can happen is that you'll simply be ignored.
If that happens, just ask someone else.
You don't have to go very far to see western aspects in Japan. Anything technology related which exists in the Western world pretty much exists in Japan. If I mentioned everything, you'd die waiting for this page to download to your computer, so I'm going to mention aspects which I found peculiar and humorous.
Take
this "French" bakery for example. Being conversant in French, I of
course know what Vie de France means, but I have to wonder if the
average Japanese knows that. You'd reasonably assume that this is
run by some French-man until you walk in. Okay, so it's Japanese
running the place. All right, at least I should be able to order
in French. What's this? Everything, including the names
of the pastries, are in Japanese. The pastries are French of course,
but that's it! Without always being able to read their names, I was
sometimes unpleasantly "suprised" by what actually goes into them.
The Japanese love to fill these pastries with things even the most adventurous
of French pastry chefs wouldn't dream up. Who ever heard of a corn
or bean-goop filled pastry??? I even tried a few basic French phrases
here. Forget it! You have to say domo arigato instead
of merci beaucoup. What a crazy outfit, you must be thinking
at this point. What's more, these bakeries are common place and very
popular in Japan. They would be more popular with me, if I knew what
I was ordering. These bakeries also exist with German or Italian
names as well.
European restaurants, pubs, bars and so on are trendy with the Japanese. They also provide a safe haven for foreigners who believe in "familiarity breeds content". It may be a good way to meet other foreigners during your trip in Japan. So you'll see upscale Italian and French restaurants (such as the Taverna dell' Orso in Kobe), British-Style pubs (such as The Pig and Whistle in Osaka and Kyoto Club Africa). Most of these places are run by the Japanese and don't expect to be served in the representative language, but your odds are better there of course, than elsewhere in Japan.
Shopping malls. Needless to say, they exist
in Japan. Anything you can think of that you can get at home, you
can get in Japan. Believe me. If your wallet is bottomless,
have fun, but for most of us, it is usually wiser to look instead of buy.
At that's what most of the Japanese love doing too. The crowds in
these places can be incredible, espcially near train stations! And
99.9% of everybody you see is Japanese. An example of the "underground"
mall, would be Whity Umeda (if it wasn't for the easy-to-read maps
you'd get lost down there). All cities, and even many smaller towns
have at least one Shopping Arcade. In smaller cities, it is the
Strip where everything happens. Think of it as South Street
in Philadelphia, with a roof! An excellent recluse when it starts
raining!
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All
those modern gizmos we have here, certainly exist in Japan. This
"Oil Robot" was photographed at a gas station in Kyoto. Roller coasters,
all the latest electronics, high-tech museum exhibits, holographic display,
and of course a first-rate train system. In short, anything you want!
But the strange thing is, that even though much seems computerized, it's
amazing that a large number of white-collar workers still do not use computers
in their everyday work. I noticed this from the train, looking into
office buildings. You would see lots of desks and paper and filing
cabinets, but there would not be a computer on each desk like here in North
America.
I say to myself - It's amazing what Japanese can do with computers,
without one!
And finally Baseball. Japan has a whole raft of ball teams. This is actually one of the oldest western influences. Baseball has been in Japan for about 100 years (it started soon after the game was invented!) Many Americans players go to Japan to improve their game. Ever seen the movie Mr. Baseball? Tom Selleck plays an American pitcher who gets transferred to a Japanese team. Needless to say I fell out of my chair laughing at all the predicaments Selleck gets himself into, in Japan. I could relate to so much of it! My favorite team is the Hanshin Tigers .
Like it or not, you won't get far without some sustenance, so naturally this topic becomes one of the first things on one's mind, while travelling Japan. I won't get into all the culinary specialties (any decent travel guide will mention something about Japanese food). Let's put it this way. It's not easy being a vegetarian in Japan. A friend of mine who has lived there 14 years manages somehow.
The
good news is, restaurants are everywhere. Why? Because basically
men hate to cook, so any working man who isn't married will probably eat
out most of the time. Hungry? Chances are there is some kind
of restaurant, noodle shop or hole-in-the-wall outfit just around the corner
ready to serve you. The bad news is, unless you enter a western,
or higher class Japanese restaurant, there naturally will be no menu in
English, no-one will be able to speak English and no plastic models of
food on display to guide you. But these little places are so pervasive
that it's hard to ignore them. To me, it's part of the adventure.
Here I am, at the Kansai-Tei next to Hotel Kansai. This was
my favorite haunt for breakfast. Why? Because I became familiar
with the breakfast set, and it was quite good. And the owners were
friendly, so I got to practise some of my Japanese.
Like some, I'm a fussy eater. Any kind of seafood is out, but luckily I like most kinds of fish, and I usually don't have a problem with beef or chicken. Sounds simple, but it's not so simple once I am mystified by the menu. Even if I can read out the names of what's available, it's usually something unrecognizable to me. I then end up asking the waiter/waitress what exactly is this. A response comes back in Japanese, which I try to understand, but really puts me not much further ahead. Usually I end up picking something at random and hope for the best. Sometimes I get lucky. I figured I was ahead of the game somewhat if I could at least identify my dish as either vegetable or animal.
On one occasion, I got one of the best tasting soups I ever had: a salmon and rice combination. Darned if I could ask for it by name! One place I got beef "tan" which I found delicious. A couple of days later, I asked the waiter (at another restaurant) what "tan" was, and he pointed to his tongue. Oh, so that's what I ate back there. Needless to say, I no longer ordered "tan" but I did prove to some extent that what you don't know can't hurt you.
When your order comes, often you'll get a bunch of side items or things in your dish you weren't expecting. Some of it looks prefectly harmless (like the pickled vegetables). It's all supposed to be edible, but I gagged on that piece of white stuff in my udon soup which had the consistency of rubber. Who knows what that was? And did I tell you about the time I got a whole mess of tiny fish in a bowl, for breakfast no less? Needless to say, with all those eyes staring at me in the morning, that part of my breakfast got a pass.
Walking into the supermarket is sure different! I'd say a good half of the stuff is unrecognizable to me. I certainly didn't buy anything if there was any doubt as to whether it was animal or vegetable.
I highly recommend you stay away from dairy products throughout your stay. Customarily, dairy products aren't a part of the Japanese diet (they're for the most part lactose intolerant) so anything available is a recent phenomenon. That being the case, the haven't got the taste aspect down pat. Hence I found stuff like yogurt and cheese to taste "wierd". Even milk is unpredicable. So unless you're one of those who gotta have their milk, I'd stay clear. For the rest of us, just remember, if the Japanese have survived centuries without milk products, surely you'll be just fine for a couple of weeks or so.
In fact, after your trip you may find you prefer the Japanese way of eating in more ways over your normal way of thinking. Let's face it, for the most part it's a lot healthier. After two or three weeks in Japan, I found I easily dropped 10 pounds. Okay, so some is probably due to my active bicycle trip, but I'm sure lots of walking and eating how the Japanese do, had a lot to do with it.
Like it or not, trains are going to be your primary means of transportation. It is for the vast majority of Japanese, since travelling by car is so expensive. So you might as well get used to the train system. It takes getting used to. On my first trip to Japan, I can't count the number of times I managed to get on the wrong train, but on my second trip, it happened only once.
On my first trip to Japan, I followed by friend's directions to get
to his place in Osaka to a 'T', or so I thought. At Osaka station
he told me to take an orange train on platform number 2. Well, I
got on platform number 2, and a pale orange train came. Like Wow!
this is amazing! For my first time, I'm getting this right!
I spoke too soon, since after many stops later, and beginning to get into
the country side I realized something must be wrong. I asked wherer
I was on my colorful map and sure enough I was way out of my way.
By the time I got back Osaka, I tried to find another platform number 2.
Turns out the one I needed was for the Osaka Loop Line. I was on
another line, but once I got to my friends place at last, who cares.
On my second trip to Japan, I was confident that I had the whole train
system mastered. I had managed to get to Kamakura from my brother's
place (which involved transferring about 4 times) and I even understood
the directions the station attendant gave me. I was impressed.
Nothing could get me mixed up now. With my confidence level too high,
I proceeded to get onto the Shinkansen (bullet train) at Omiya for
the next stop (Otsu-Nomiya). From there I would transfer to the Nikko
line to visit the historic town of Nikko for the day. Hell this was
easier than shooting fish in a barrel since the platform clearly indicated
that Otsu-Nomiya was the next stop. So naturally I got on the Shinkansen
without a second thought. As the train pulled out the conductor came
along and asked me my destination. Naturally I told him Otsu-Nomiya,
but he told me this train was express bound for Sendai. Sendai??
I realized that was a good 200 miles north than Otsu-Nomiya! Good
grief. Well, it looks like a change of plans. Guess I'm going
to get a good look at Sendai instead of Nikko, 'cause by the time I got
back to Nikko it would be almost time to leave! When I got to Sendai,
I definitely asked the conductor what train I could get to return
to Omiya. He gave me the time for a train which would arrive in Omiya
at around 8:00pm. You can be sure I kept a good eye on my watch that
day! Not all was lost, since Sendai despite being a big city, did
have some interesting things to see. When I arrived back at my brother's
late that night, needless to say he was suprised to hear I had visited
Sendai instead of Nikko (which were the plans we discussed yesterday).
I was going to photograph the Otsu-Nomiya station that train should have stopped at, but it went by too fast! Those bullet trains really move!
At some of the bigger stations, there are a myriad of platforms and lines, with trains all going to different destinations at different times, some express and some local and by now if you're not confused, you should be! Getting to the right platform is quite a noble accomplishment. But even then you can still get on the wrong train since more than one line can share the same platform (though usually not) and more often, some trains are express or limited run, meaning they won't reach or even stop at your final destination.
Get a good map of the train system. You'll be lost without it, I guarantee it! The map helps tremendously when it comes time to transfer as many lines are color-coded. It's also a good idea to ask someone where this train is going, every time you get on one. This is where some Japanese comes in handy. At the bigger stations you may have to ask where to get such-and-such line, since the signs to the various platforms won't always be in English! If you don't ask, at best you may waste lots of time looking for the right platform by trial and error and at worst, get on the wrong train of course. Again, helps to have some knowledge of Japanese.
Next to food,
decent lodging is probably the next thing on your mind. Again, please
refer to any decent tour guide to explain to you the difference between
a Minshiku and a Ryokan. Besides those, you may often
find yourself staying at a Business Hotel. Somewhat like a western
style hotel, but usually with smaller rooms. My favorite hotel in
Osaka was Hoteru Kansai. This was affordable, and with so
many rooms, they never seemed to be fully booked up. Also, the area
around became familiar to me, a valuable consideration in Japan!
Reservations are always a good idea, but unless you can be sure of where you'll be and when (for me that was pretty much impossible for much of my trip) just try to find something as soon as it gets dark. After dinner, I would typically ask where the nearest hotel was. Sometimes I would have to bicycle a few miles in the dark, but unless it was pouring, no insult was added to injury. You can end up in some pretty instesting places, but watch out for...
What your tour-guide
may not tell you is the love-hotel. Careful! Unless
you are with a mate of the opposite sex, stay clear of these. And
even then you'd probably feel far more comfortable in a regular hotel.
How do you identify a love-hotel? Well, usually it is a garish,
expensive looking building with a sissy name, with lots of neon signage,
particularly a big neon sign at the top. If that's not enough, lots
of pink is a dead give-away! The one shown here ("Boutique Hotel")
is in Sakura-nomiya, Osaka, a love-hotel district. Others include
"Hotel City Angel" and "King Dam" (their spelling of Kingdom!)
Even though this seems like another Western thing, this time it's really
something Asian. Like many Asian cultures, the Japanese are very
discrete when it comes down to sexuality. It's been that way for
centuries, and the love-hotel is just a modern extension of their age-old
ways of doing things. And like the rest of Japan, walking around
a love-hotel district is safe for foreigners as the hotels prefer to solicit
a Japanese clientele. Heck a good friend of mine even lives in such
a district, right next door to a love hotel.
One fo the first thing on your mind is probably Temples and Shrines. There are no shortage of those, believe me. In fact, you can make an interesting trip just by visiting temples and shrines (many Japanese do!) For example, some Buddhists like to make a pilgrimage of visiting all 88 temples on the Island of Shikoku. People used to walk from temple to temple (and some still do) though most prefer to take a bus nowadays. As I was doing my bicycle trip across Shikoku, I met one fellow who was visiting the temples on bike! When I met him, he had visited 37 temples and had stickers clearly marked on his bicycle to keep track. He was sure an interesting fellow (and in shape too, as I found it difficult to keep up with him!)
Some temples are open to the public, other are private and others can only be visited on special occasions or by appointment. In all cases, make sure you remove your shoes before entering a temple. This is usually done at the base of the temple's steps. Just look for the area where people place their shoes. Otherwise just use common sense. If it's a carpet, wood or tatami mat (instead of stone) you shouldn't be wearing your shoes.
Museums can be interesting,
but don't expect much to be explained in English. Unless it is some
novel pop-culture thing (like a Science Museum with lots of kid-friendly
interactive exhibits) these tend not to be too popular with the Japanese.
So it's a great way to get away from the crowds. There is always
some kind of enterance fee, usually a few dollars for an adult. It
may sound steep, since most Japanese museums are small. Even on days
when it seems I'm one of the few in there, they still an attendant (usually
a young Japanese woman) sitting in a corner of each area, ready to answer
any questions visitors may have on the exhibits (like it's as if I
could ask any!). So, financially speaking I doubt these places turn
a profit. Aquariums on the other hand, are very popular, particularly
if they feature live shows. Be prepared to spend a little more to
enter one of these.
Karaoke. It seems to be everywhere. This is one Japanese
thing you could say has caught on in the West. Just look for the
familiar sign in Katakana. In most cases, you go with your buddies
and rent out a Karaoka room by the hour. The Karaoke bars usually
make their money from the food and drinks they serve (Karaoke is the means
to attract customers). Why even some Taxis have Karaoke machines
(hoping that you will want to go around a few blocks just to finish a few
more songs!)
Amusement Parks. These are very popular with the Japanese, and are very crowded. Foreigners usually ignore them, since it's the exact same thing as home. There's Tokyo Disneyland of course, and Huis Ten Bosch a Dutch village near Nagasaki. Neither of these places I have personally visited.
Amusement Centers. Gambling is illegal per-se, so instead of Casinos, the Japanese have Pachinko parlors and game centers.
Pachinko is a game of skill (but really a lot of luck as well) and the goal is to capture as many steel balls as possible as these fall down a vertical pin-ball set-up. Skillful players seem to have baskets of these balls, and I have to wonder how much that is worth in prizes (since no prize can be money). There is a black market where players can trade in their prizes for money and if you score it big in Pachinko, asking around will probably get it to it.
Game Centers feature games of skill. In there you will find skill-stop
slot machines, bar-pushing coin machines. Everything (except the
video games) pay out tokens which can be used to play other games or cashed
in for piddly prizes. You've probably seen these along the boardwalks
of Atlantic City, Virginia Beach and other coastal cities. They are
common in Japan, and I might give them a try if they actually paid out
money.
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