My last trip to Japan convinced me not to move there.

[shrgnatlas]

[YT]SI3wNui9ex4[/YT]

It is a great country and all, but after a solid 10 days I had more fun getting lost then I did at a shopping arcade or supermarket. Teaching isn't my thing, and I'm not working with money, so I'll keep the country as a tourist spot.

http://youtube.com/profile?user=shrgnatlas

How does everyone else fare though? I could not imagine living in the country for more then a year, and even during my short trip I had been alienated from the language barrier, and ostracized because I wasn't following customs I should have been aware of. Not as glamorous as I expected, but still fun nonetheless. For anyone asking, I traveled for (2) concerts, not anime, games, or movies. It's just not my taste.

[halfnip]

With all do respect, you can't come to a foreign country (especially one that's as populated, etc.) such as Japan (in particular Tokyo) and expect to feel fully comfortable in a few days. Hell, there are some FG's that still aren't used to the metro system and will never get used to it--not to mention the language barrier.

I'd say this goes both ways, as the typical FOB will most likely feel the same way traveling from Japan to some other foreign country.

Just my .02Y

[GomiGirl]

I have very little sympathy for somebody who was so unprepared for visiting a country where they didn't speak the language or have a clue where they were supposed to go and not bothering to book hotels. Plan ahead!!!

Pitching a tent in downtown Tokyo!! WTF!! Get a hotel!!

[omae mona]

I thought the video displayed a very interesting point of view. The Narita Express train map became the "simplified metro map", and you highlighted your plans to work your way, over several days, down from the city of Ueno, down through the city of Akihabara, and then down to the city of Tokyo itself. That's a lot of distance to cover in just a few days. Did it work out? You seemed to be targeting the quiet area "away from the public" out in the suburbs between Shinbashi and Hamamatsucho. Were you able to find a place to pitch your tent there?

Regarding how some of us survive here, the key points are:

• We pretty much live along the Black Line, mostly in Tokyo or the adjoining cities of Ueno and Shinbashi so our commutes aren't too long and we can stay on the simplified map.
• When we want to go camping, we go out a little further than you did, typically way out into the countryside, like Shinagawa.

[Oradea]

Is this guy on crack?

He thinks its weird to have homeless people in a park, but is considering himself camping in downtown tokyo????

[Takechanpoo]

It is a great country and all, but after a solid 10 days I had more fun getting lost then I did at a shopping arcade or supermarket. Teaching isn't my thing, and I'm not working with money, so I'll keep the country as a tourist spot.

http://youtube.com/profile?user=shrgnatlas

How does everyone else fare though? I could not imagine living in the country for more then a year, and even during my short trip I had been alienated from the language barrier, and ostracized because I wasn't following customs I should have been aware of. Not as glamorous as I expected, but still fun nonetheless. For anyone asking, I traveled for (2) concerts, not anime, games, or movies. It's just not my taste.

All normal people must think like you.
You are right.
Numerous J-eyes are always watching you gaijin dudes stelthly.
If I were not Japanese, I didnt absolutely live or want to live in this country.

[GuyJean]

"Um. Whoa.. I travelled on this black line.. Then I went here.."..

(Close window)..

... ...

GJ

[Jack]

It's like me going to Prague enjoying the sites as a tourist and then saying "i'll never live here". Of course I'll never live there. I have no relations, no language and no desire. This guy is doing the same thing. In order to be able to live somewhere you need to have a desire and a reason. Just because you are visiting some place it's stupid to make a judgement whether you would live there or not. I would love to live in Japan because my wife is Japanese and I speak the language plus I like the place. My best friend who is married to a Canadian has no desire. Perfectly normal.
Anyway, thanks for stirring the pot.

P.S. he is wearing fucking shoes in bed.

[emperor]

P.S. he is wearing fucking shoes in bed.

lol, that was the first thing I noticed

the vid was too long, he could said all that stuff in 1/5th of the time, but then maybe he was jet-lagged & hence the scatterbraining..

[Bucky]

Obviously a seasoned international traveler. Good thing they have all those campgrounds where he can pitch a tent. Good thing he knows all the camping laws in Tokyo.

[hundefar]

I have often "pitched a tent" in Tokyo...actually I am pitching a tent right now. Oh, he actually means a TENT?

[ttjereth]

Our loss?

Shouldn't camp in Tokyo, too many ninjas.

[Adhesive]

Are you wearing eye-liner? Maybe you would have been happier in Ni-chome?

[Mr Doricar]

I'm invoicing you for 6 minutes of my life!

I WANT THEM BACK

[halfnip]

• When we want to go camping, we go out a little further than you did, typically way out into the countryside, like Shinagawa.

Are you serious? Since when is Shinagawa the "countryside"?

[omae mona]

Are you serious?

No.

[quote]Since when is Shinagawa the "countryside"? ]

Well, the original poster seemed to think the Narita express map's box marked "Tokyo" represented the whole city of Tokyo, and the adjoining areas (Shinbashi) were a quiet area outside of Tokyo, away from the public, and a good place for camping. I viewed his other video where he actually did go camping - turns out he was brave and went all the way off the Black Line, pitching his tent in Odaiba along the beach.

[t3hWIT]

I subscribed. I don't have enough time tonight to watch the videos, but I'll take a look at them later this weekend.

It's interesting to see someone (from what I could tell, I didn't watch all the videos yet) attempt to make their way around with little knowlege of the language. I'll be going to Japan next spring/summer for a couple weeks, with no language skills other than what Rosetta Stone has to offer, and I'll have a few days to get lost in Osaka.

[DrP]

Considering that many large cities DO have urban camping areas (Amsterdam and Paris for example). I don't find it at all bizarre he'd be travelling that way. I toured by bicycle all over Europe and into the Middle east with nothing but a tent and sleeping bag - no problems. I even camped outside the Plaaka in a courtyard of a hotel - I just paid a few drachma to the keeper for the privs. What totally sucks about Tokyo for backpacking travellers, cyclists, etc , is that there are not many backpacker friendly places around Kanto. You have to meticulously plan before arriving so you can make sure to have a reservation at one of the few 'backpacker lodges'.

Key to doing this right is to realize that at Narita you can use a day room cheaply and get fully showered and ready to head out in the unknown. They have internet, cafes , bars, McDonalds and alot of Japanese food places. I'd personally recommend just staying in Narita airport - as there's no reason to actually visit any other part of Japan. Everything is well represented in the terminal shops, the prices are the same and so are the people you're likely to meet. So , Narita is good enough. Just go there , hang out for a couple days and return home. You'll have completely tasted everything there is about Japan.

[shrgnatlas]

Maybe I made my original post sound too harsh - I don't hate the country. I'm ignorant, and I know it. That was the plan, and I purposely didn't go back and study Japanese before I left for the trip. I didn't pick up any books up about "customs", talk to any friends about what I should bring, do, or plan for, and excluding me NEEDING to be in Appi-kogen on the 16th, and Nagano on the 18th, I had NO PLANS whatsoever.

I was prepared to be ill-prepared. That, like I said, was the plan, (even if it meant me putting my shoes on the bed. It was a hotel for international tourists anyways):

http://www.oakhotel.co.jp/

To anyone who thinks I'm a novice, and don't have any merit or weight behind what I said in my original post: you are right. I am not blaming the country for my misfortune. In fact, I embraced it, and it became the very reason I had as much fun as I did. I simply found the country to be too xenophobic at times, (which isn't a surprise), which would only lead any outsiders to STAY outsiders for their entire stay, (or citizenship), while in Japan. I'm just not ready for such a commitment, and I honestly wasn't expecting to be.

For anyone who was entertained, thanks for the nice words. For everyone else, don't worry about it - I know I was talking a lot, but I barely have cut anything from my original tape. What I have posted obviously isn't for you, it's for the very few who want a new perspective on travel, and aren't as informed or educated over the process as someone who HAS traveled, or certainly as much as someone who is currently living in the country.

Thanks again, though I'll try and be as humble as I can to those who have pulled off an extended visa in Japan, and are happy. Good job.

[Adhesive]

Ayn Rand fan?

[Buraku]

v amusing thread, thanks for the laugh

try not to smoke too much crack

[hundefar]

Ayn Rand

I'd hit it...with my "Fountainhead".

[Tsuru]

I'm invoicing you for 6 minutes of my life!

I WANT THEM BACK

hehehe

[kusai Jijii]

Holy snappin' frog's shit!

[Mulboyne]

I see from one of your other videos that you ended up camping in Odaiba.

I think precisely because you were on such a tight budget - for instance, you weren't keen to pay 310 yen to get yourself back out of Odaiba - you would have been better off doing a bit more preparation, working out how much you wanted to spend each day and giving yourself a few more fixed points in your schedule rather than condemning yourself to pounding the streets and cooling off in fast food joints.