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2 Weeks in Japan?

sim667 said:
I've got a pasmo card which seems to be the one.. It works on the subway but I don't know about buses. It works on the vending machines too.

If you're not going to leave tokyo it may be worth taking the day trip to nikko. I didn't go as I've travelled all over japan but a lot of people say it's stunning.

Also can anyone tell me why Japanese people always pull the victory finger sign when having their photo taken.

I saw first selfie pole today, literally amazing.
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Pasmo was great. Can be used on JR line & buses. Getting our 500 yen deposits back came in handy for last minute gifts too.
 
Just a wee tip if you are interested in that sort of thing but the National Museum of Emerging Science & Innovation (Miraikan) on Odaiba Island is an excellent place to waste a few hours. Best way to get there is by the monorail that takes you over the Rainbow Bridge.
We got to see this cheeky wee fellow :)
Wee Asimo.jpg
He does a performance at 11am & 2pm but dont go on a tuesday like we did at first as its closed.
 
we have booked our first accommodation. It's our 5th wedding anniversary while we're there so we have booked one night at a relatively posh Ryokan in Asia.

I am sad that I might struggle to bathe in a lot of the onsen, though - because I have a tattoo on my back and one on my foot (that one especially would be very hard to cover with a sticking plaster). :( do i look like a bloody yakuza? hmm? *pout* I know that a minority are ok with it, but finding them seems to be about going in and asking, and then the chances of them being the really picturesque ones is slim.

Perhaps it's for the best. I'd be self conscious about my weight and boobs. Travelling in asia previously people have been really blatant and rude - and i wasn't naked then!
 
Spangles - some onsen have private baths - usually called family baths. If you can find one of those you'd be fine. We did get lots of attention for our weight/boobs - even the more slender amongst us. A couple of times women came up and actually grabbed and squeezed boobs. I got a few "you're so fat" comments (and I was actually not overweight at the time - just not Japanese sized!) from very old women (meant as a compliment). This was, however, deep in the most conservative countryside - things will be quite different in Kansai/Kanto..
 
we've more or less fixed our travel plans within japan, now.

arrive tokyo and get train straight to kyoto. 4 nights in kyoto including one night at aforementioned posh-ish ryokan
then on to shodoshima, 4 nights there.
then back to tokyo for the rest of the holiday.

Does that sound about right, gaijingirl ? (In terms of amount of time in kyoto and shodoshima?) I'm just not a happy travelling all over kind of person. The guide book we have seems to think no one would spend more than a day or two in shodoshima (or anywhere outside of the big tourist hubs), but i just want a bit of a chill out.

which reigion do you think we should stay in in tokyo, btw? priority is probably not too hilly, lots of good bars/cafes/restaurants.
 
I'm possibly an anomaly in that I would spend the majority of my time outside the tourist hubs tbh and certainly outside of Tokyo.. so I may not be the best person to ask. I can fully understand that as a first experience it makes sense to be based in Tokyo/Kyoto etc and they are amazing places. I have friends who live there I could ask about where to stay in Tokyo - I've stayed in a number of places - none hilly - I don't recall any of it being hilly tbh.. but I would think Atomic Suplex would be better for Tokyo advice. I've always stayed with friends or been put up for work, so never really had to choose iykwim.

I think your holiday sounds like a really nice balance actually. I've spent a good bit of time in both Okayama and Takamatsu and I am so jealous of you going to Shodoshima... it's such a beautiful area that. Just thinking about it makes me want to go back for good.
 
spanglechick said:
we've more or less fixed our travel plans within japan, now.

arrive tokyo and get train straight to kyoto. 4 nights in kyoto including one night at aforementioned posh-ish ryokan
then on to shodoshima, 4 nights there.
then back to tokyo for the rest of the holiday.

Does that sound about right, gaijingirl ? (In terms of amount of time in kyoto and shodoshima?) I'm just not a happy travelling all over kind of person. The guide book we have seems to think no one would spend more than a day or two in shodoshima (or anywhere outside of the big tourist hubs), but i just want a bit of a chill out.

which reigion do you think we should stay in in tokyo, btw? priority is probably not too hilly, lots of good bars/cafes/restaurants.
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We stayed in the Ningyocho region for a week before we stayed in Shiodome but tbh i dont think it matters as everywhere is within easy reach on the underground which again tbh is a piece of piss to navigate. Places like Shibuya, Roppongi etc were only 20 minutes tops away. Both had plenty of local restaurants, bars are harder to locate as they dont look like bars on the whole. Sotetsu Fresa hotels are good value if a tad small but you wont be spending that much time in your room as there is far too much to see. As for hills i dont recall any. Its a fairly flat city.
 
oh god.. I can't stop thinking about the inland sea now... I'm even looking (again) at job adverts in Japan... summers spent on the beaches and in the mountains ... *sigh*
 
spanglechick we stayed in Shiodome at the park hotel when we were in Tokyo first and then The Hilton in Shinjuku at the end. Personally I preferred the Shiodome area, both areas were quite officey and there were only really chain bars etc around, but Shiodome was quieter and less manic car wise when walking around. Shiodome was very easy on the metro too. If you look at either of these hotels I will say the park hotel is much much better than the Hilton, the hilton was seriously stressful and disappointing to stay at.

Also I don't think your tattoo will be too much of an issue, I saw plenty of westerners in japan with tattoos and no-one really blinked an eye lid.

gaijingirl and starfish I really liked seto and miyajima Island, but I wouldn't go out of my way to stay there particularly for multiple nights, peronsally I'd go to hiroshima and stay and then maybe have a night on Miyajima, it'd probably be a good place to stay in a ryokin.
 
sim667 said:
spanglechick we stayed in Shiodome at the park hotel when we were in Tokyo first and then The Hilton in Shinjuku at the end. Personally I preferred the Shiodome area, both areas were quite officey and there were only really chain bars etc around, but Shiodome was quieter and less manic car wise when walking around. Shiodome was very easy on the metro too. If you look at either of these hotels I will say the park hotel is much much better than the Hilton, the hilton was seriously stressful and disappointing to stay at.

Also I don't think your tattoo will be too much of an issue, I saw plenty of westerners in japan with tattoos and no-one really blinked an eye lid.

gaijingirl and starfish I really liked seto and miyajima Island, but I wouldn't go out of my way to stay there particularly for multiple nights, peronsally I'd go to hiroshima and stay and then maybe have a night on Miyajima, it'd probably be a good place to stay in a ryokin.
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I've stayed at the Park Hotel in Shiodome too, it was great....very easy to get everywhere. 10 minutes walk from the Pokemon Center, and it's got the awesome Ghibli clock just opposite :D
 
Yeah lovely hotel innit....... I like the fact it starts on the 25th floor.

Its opposite that Miyagi clock too, although I had no idea it was near the pokemon centre.
 
sim667 said:
Yeah lovely hotel innit....... I like the fact it starts on the 25th floor.

Its opposite that Miyagi clock too, although I had no idea it was near the pokemon centre.
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Yeah, 10 minutes walk away. I liked that the lift went right down to where the Metro and all that was, handy when it rained! There was a pub, starbucks, noodle bars and a great little booksop nearby too.

It's also about 20-30 minutes walk away from Hamarikyu Gardens and the Tsu.?.. Fish Market.

I want to go there with the kids next year but they don't do twin bed rooms. Looking at the Century Southern Tower one in Shinjuku.
 
I didn't get to the fish market :(

I could see that being handy, and the undercover walkways out of it in the rain, to the metro..... It was absolutely lovely and sunny for my entire two weeks in japan (apart from a bit when I went to shirakawa-go
 
I got to the fish market but was too late for the tuna auction :(

I had a couple of rainy days, and some absolute scorchers.
 
mwgdrwg said:
I got to the fish market but was too late for the tuna auction :(

I had a couple of rainy days, and some absolute scorchers.
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Pacific weather :D

I want to go back to tokyo, but with freinds rather than parents, I think it could be very funny :D

Also I wont have to explain what Hentai videos are :facepalm:
 
Nice, You've got a lot more of the cosplay type youth culture in your pics.

Did you go to a convention or something?
 
starfish said:
Ha. Theyre almost identical to ours. Food, tall buildings, loads of lights. We even had tea in the teahouse in Hama-rikyu Gardens. And saw a wedding at the Meiji Shrine :) I miss it.
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Me too, really wished I'd moved there when I was younger. Loved Tokyo completely. Hoping to go back next year with the kids! Gonna take them to Disneyland and the Ghibli Museum amongst many other wonderful things.
 
mwgdrwg said:
Me too, really wished I'd moved there when I was younger. Loved Tokyo completely. Hoping to go back next year with the kids! Gonna take them to Disneyland and the Ghibli Museum amongst many other wonderful things.
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We went to the Ghibli Museum. They wouldnt let me on Catbus though :(:D
 
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