16 Hours in Japan, 2 Nerds and One Goal: Please Help!

[stolid_revenge]

Basically me and my friend are going to Mongolia to explore the netherregions of this planet that is Earth. On our way to there we get to spend about 3 days in Beijing, China and about 16 Hours in Japan.

Japan is most definetely a cool country and we want to maximize our "exposure" to Tokyo as much as we can from the moment we land in Narita Airport till the second we fly off back to the good ole' USA.

We're flying by ANA (All Nippon Airways) and the itinerary basically reads:

July 17 Beijing-Tokyo 2:45 PM 7:05 PM
July 18 Tokyo-Washington DC 11:10 AM 1045 AM

If my calculations aren't wrong that's about 16 hours. Im guessing we're gonna spend about 4 hours checking and checking out and about, at max, 2 hours getting to Tokyo so that's about 10 hours we can spend in Tokyo, mostly during the night.

Please give us specific information on how to:

1. Get from Narita Airpor to Tokyo
2. Schedule of trains in Tokyo so we can get back.
3. Whether it is required to check in to Narita Airport Hotel.
4. Any tips.
5. Anything we should be aware of.
6. Where we can change our money so we can buy some stuff.

We're cool with just walking around at night checking out places. So help us please with your FG experience.

Thanks in advance.

[devicenull]

im in beijing at beida... if you get bored feel free to stop by or something

[stolid_revenge]

please help us out

[mr. sparkle]

please help us out

What more would you like to know?

http://www.fuckedgaijin.com/forums/showthread.php?t=6111&postdays=0&postorder=asc&highlight=trip&start=0

Might be better to tack on to your previous post so others
can benefit from the FG infotainment hub.

Peeeeace out!

[gomichild]

The quickest and safest way to get from Tokyo to Narita is using the Narita express - timetable and fares here at JREast

Don't get off at Tokyo station - there is not much to do there. Get off at Shinjuku and explore, then catch the Yamanote line around to Harajuku and then walk or train it to Shibuya.

Change your money at the airport. You only have 10 hours and won't want to be stuffing around trying to find a place.

That's all I can think of at this time of day...

[mercutio]

The quickest and safest way to get from Tokyo to Narita is using the Narita express - timetable and fares here at JREast

Don't get off at Tokyo station - there is not much to do there. Get off at Shinjuku and explore, then catch the Yamanote line around to Harajuku and then walk or train it to Shibuya.

Change your money at the airport. You only have 10 hours and won't want to be stuffing around trying to find a place.

That's all I can think of at this time of day...

Gomi is absolutely right but I would modify a few things:

based on your timetable I would not wander around Shinjuku...at Shinjuku transfer to the yamanote line like she said and go straight to Shibuya. At that time of day nothing will be happening in Harajuku so skip it. Once in shibuya look for Shibuya Crossing... It is the busiest pedestrain crossing in the world so there will be plenty to see. If you are standing at the station and looking at the crossing go diagonally to your left it will look like the area with the most going on.

Go into the light, my friend....it is a beautiful world of eyecandy over there... unbelievable eyecandy.... short skirts and knee high boots...sparkly pink and aqua frilly...cotton candy for the eyes...just wander around for a couple of hours.... this should get you to 1am or so. The trains have stopped running so youll have to cab it at this point. You are now about a 1000yen cab ride from Roppongi. More than likely your Japanese skills arent up to going to completely japanese clubs for an extended period of time so once youve looked around shibuya its time for a little mayhem in "the pong"

but first we stop in Nishi Azabu (very close to Roppongi).... get in a cab and have them take you to Nishi Azabu.... get dropped off right before the intersection and walk across to your right....30 meters up the street on your right you will see a small sign for a club called Muse....go there.... this is like "upscale" Roppongi .... big club on the inside but you cane tell from outside...lots of different areas inside and the usual assortment of epats and Japanese chicks who want to meet gaijin but dont like to think of themselves as "Roppongi Girls".

oh by the way...clubs dont close until late morning here and your not going to sleep.... you go to bed if your lucky, but no sleep until youre on the plane

once youre done with Muse get in a cab and tell the taxi driver to take you to Roppongi crossing. when you reach the crossing get out and go in to a bar that will be on your left before the intersection (assuming youre coming from nishi azabu)

Geronimos is on the 2nd story and a good place to start...it will be pretty packed at this time of night but go you should be thirsty by now and will have to fortify yourself for what is ahead, so go in and get 3 or 4 shots real quick and head out. go back across Roppongi crossing and go down the main strip.

At this point, if you look like you have any money you will be accosted by a number of large Nigerian gentlement who are insistant on you coming to the club to see some naked women... dont bother....results with these guys vary alot and you dont have time for a strip club anyway. Were now into the seedy part of the night and all of the strippers and hostesses will be getting off of work soon (about 3-4am)and there will be lots of hot, blonde russian chicks running around. As you work your way south on the main strip there are a number of places you can hit before winding up at your target youll have to ask people how to find them

Quest
Mogumbos
Castillos
motown
motown II
wallstreet
911
etc etc

and there are about 3 or 4 different Gas panics that you can go to... you have to go at least once. It is the lowest point on the evolutionary scale but we all still have that reptillian brainstem so youll have fun...dont worry.... find the Gas panic that has a their own Pizza place on the 1st floor....go upstairs....drink....make something happen.

if you have not wound up in a hotel or jail at this point....get on the oedo line (that start about 5:30 i think) and it will take you straight to shinjuku...there catch the Narita express back to the airport...get on plane...go to sleep

and there you are... will that work for you?

[GomiGirl]

Ah mercutio..... I couldn't have said it better... that is the true FG experience.

Personally I would rather have white hot nails shoved into my eye-sockets and my fingernails removed with a rusty butter knife than to follow the itinerary you have mentioned but then I am a bitter old hand that has been in Japan too long and prefer underground, smokey bottle-keep bars where people discuss the relative virtues of existentialism.. but that is just me..

On that note - a new bar has just opened in Golden Gai my friends. It is rather larger than the 6 person bars in the area and there is no sit fee. It will hold around 40 people.

The food is "ethnic" eg nasi goreng, sticky rice etc.. it is run by a group of very enterprising and friendly Japanese girls. They have a party menu - nomi-houdai for three hours including food for around Y4,000.

I think I will have my birthday party there this year so mark your calenders for late July/early August. I will send around the engraved invitations shortly..

[nullpointer]

based on your timetable............

.......there you are... will that work for you?

have you considred writing a book?

[Taro Toporific]

.... bar .. Golden Gai... "ethnic"... friendly Japanese girls...nomi-houdai ... Gomi-birthday party...

YES! You hit all the fav keywords!

My "reptillian brainstem" awaits the GomiGirl journey deep into "the lowest point on the evolutionary scale."

[Caustic Saint]

I think I will have my birthday party there this year so mark your calenders for late July/early August. I will send around the engraved invitations shortly..

It will be on a weekend, right? I've got some air miles that need using.

And if not, we'll just have to schedule a repeat party for sometime in September.

[GomiGirl]

I think I will have my birthday party there this year so mark your calenders for late July/early August. I will send around the engraved invitations shortly..

It will be on a weekend, right? I've got some air miles that need using.

And if not, we'll just have to schedule a repeat party for sometime in September.

Goes without saying.... does that mean I get two birthday parties???

[Caustic Saint]

It will be on a weekend, right? I've got some air miles that need using.

And if not, we'll just have to schedule a repeat party for sometime in September.

Goes without saying.... does that mean I get two birthday parties???

Well, considering I haven't even had one....

[kamome]

go straight to Shibuya...wind up at Gas panic.

Well, mercutio has just eloquently described my typical Friday night for the last few years. I generally skip the motowns; just too damn seedy and filled with hookers (especially Motown 1). 911 is packed to the gills on Friday nights--you can't even move. A nice alternative on Friday nights is Heartland in Roppongi Hills. The typical bar hopping thing for the "non-Roppongi" types is to hit Heartland for several of their vile Kirin Heartland-brand beers and then hit Muse afterwards. But be careful: too many trips to Heartland and you'll start to call it Heart of Darkness.

[GomiGirl]

It will be on a weekend, right? I've got some air miles that need using.

And if not, we'll just have to schedule a repeat party for sometime in September.

Goes without saying.... does that mean I get two birthday parties???

Well, considering I haven't even had one....

Oh sweetie.... isn't everyday a party in Korea?

[Caustic Saint]

Oh sweetie.... isn't everyday a party in Korea?

Only the days when I....nevermind....

[mercutio]

Ah mercutio..... I couldn't have said it better... that is the true FG experience.

well i think thats what he was asking for...

Actually I would rather go to golden gai to this place youre talking about.....so when are we going to go drinking? (I'm taking the JETRO on the 27th so ill be studying up until then)

[stolid_revenge]

The quickest and safest way to get from Tokyo to Narita is using the Narita express - timetable and fares here at JREast

Don't get off at Tokyo station - there is not much to do there. Get off at Shinjuku and explore, then catch the Yamanote line around to Harajuku and then walk or train it to Shibuya.

Change your money at the airport. You only have 10 hours and won't want to be stuffing around trying to find a place.

That's all I can think of at this time of day...

Gomi is absolutely right but I would modify a few things:

based on your timetable I would not wander around Shinjuku...at Shinjuku transfer to the yamanote line like she said and go straight to Shibuya. At that time of day nothing will be happening in Harajuku so skip it. Once in shibuya look for Shibuya Crossing... It is the busiest pedestrain crossing in the world so there will be plenty to see. If you are standing at the station and looking at the crossing go diagonally to your left it will look like the area with the most going on.

Go into the light, my friend....it is a beautiful world of eyecandy over there... unbelievable eyecandy.... short skirts and knee high boots...sparkly pink and aqua frilly...cotton candy for the eyes...just wander aruond for a couple of hours.... this should get you to 1am or so. The trains have stopped running so youll have to cab it at this point. You are now about a 1000yen cab ride from Roppongi. More than likely youre Japanese skills arent up to going to completely japanese clubs for an extended period of time so once youve looked around shibuya its time for a little mayhem in "the pong"

but first we stop in Nishi Azabu (very close to Roppongi).... get in a cab and have them take you to Nishi Azabu.... get dropped off right before the intersection and walk across to your right....30 meters up the street on your right you will see a small sign for a club called Muse....go there.... this is like "upscale" Roppongi .... big club on the inside but you cane tell from outside...lots of different areas inside and the usual assortment of epats and Japanese chicks who want to meet gaijin but dont like to think of themselves as "Roppongi Girls".

oh by the way...clubs dont close until late morning here and your not going to sleep.... you go to bed if your lucky, but no sleep until youre on the plane

once youre done with Muse get in a cab and tell the taxi driver to take you to Roppongi crossing. when you reach the crossing get out and go in to a bar that will be on your left before the intersection (assuming youre coming from nishi azabu)

Geronimos is on the 2nd story and a good place to start...it will be pretty packed at this time of night but go you should be thirsty by now and will have to fortify yourself for what is ahead, so go in and get 3 or 4 shots real quick and head out. go back across Roppongi crossing and go down the main strip.

At this point, if you look like you have any money you will be accosted by a number of large Nigerian gentlement who are insistant on you coming to the club to see some naked women... dont bother....results with these guys vary alot and you dont have time for a strip club anyway. Were now into the seedy part of the night and all of the strippers and hostesses will be getting off of work soon (about 3-4am)and there will be lots of hot, blonde russian chicks running around. As you work your way south on the main strip there are a number of places you can hit before winding up at your target youll have to ask people how to find them

Quest
Mogumbos
Castillos
motown
motown II
wallstreet
911
etc etc

and there are about 3 or 4 different Gas panics that you can go to... you have to go at least once. It is the lowest point on the evolutionary scale but we all still have that reptillian brainstem so youll have fun...dont worry.... find the Gas panic that has a their own Pizza place on the 1st floor....go upstairs....drink....make something happen.

if you have not wound up in a hotel or jail at this point....get on the oedo line (that start about 5:30 i think) and it will take you straight to shinjuku...there catch the Narita express back to the airport...get on plane...go to sleep

and there you are... will that work for you?

sweet

[stolid_revenge]

The quickest and safest way to get from Tokyo to Narita is using the Narita express - timetable and fares here at JREast

Don't get off at Tokyo station - there is not much to do there. Get off at Shinjuku and explore, then catch the Yamanote line around to Harajuku and then walk or train it to Shibuya.

Change your money at the airport. You only have 10 hours and won't want to be stuffing around trying to find a place.

That's all I can think of at this time of day...

I was checking out the JREAST site and it says:

*All seats on the Narita Express require advance reservations.

Do I have to call in advance or something? cause that would suck. I'm thinking I should be able to just go and buy the ticket.

[Steve Bildermann]

Do I have to call in advance or something? cause that would suck. I'm thinking I should be able to just go and buy the ticket.

Yes you can just go and buy a ticket and that ticket will reserve a seat on a specific train at a specific time. That is called advanced booking. Trains run about every 30mins so you just book for the next train. DON'T have a few beers before leaving and think you can catch a later train after you bought a ticket. The ticket collector will not be sympathetic and you will be charged again.

[Ol Dirty Gaijin]

On that note - a new bar has just opened in Golden Gai my friends. It is rather larger than the 6 person bars in the area and there is no sit fee. It will hold around 40 people.

GG, is this the bar at the end of one of the lanes with a greenish theme going on. Always has two girls behind the bar and some at?

[Mulboyne]

GG's description makes it sound like Krishna
But I guess there are a bunch of other places there too.

[GomiGirl]

GG's description makes it sound like Krishna
But I guess there are a bunch of other places there too.

Pin-Pong.. you win!!

Krishna is the correct answer.

However, I was going there before the write-up in the Japan Times..

[gkanai]

A nice alternative on Friday nights is Heartland in Roppongi Hills. The typical bar hopping thing for the "non-Roppongi" types is to hit Heartland for several of their vile Kirin Heartland-brand beers and then hit Muse afterwards.

Dude, Heartland is a f'n mess these days. I walked by on Friday around 12 AM and there was a line out the door like 15-20 people waiting to get it.

Hit SuperDeluxe- a few doors down from Heartland, towards Nishi Azabu. Much better music, gaijin friendly crowd, not insanely crowded, etc.

[mercutio]

A nice alternative on Friday nights is Heartland in Roppongi Hills. The typical bar hopping thing for the "non-Roppongi" types is to hit Heartland for several of their vile Kirin Heartland-brand beers and then hit Muse afterwards.

Dude, Heartland is a f'n mess these days. I walked by on Friday around 12 AM and there was a line out the door like 15-20 people waiting to get it.

Yeah Ive gotta agree. I have never once been to Heartland and enjoyed it. Dont get me wrong...i like crowded smokey bars where everyones drinking heavily but there is just something about the layout of that place and the basic clientelle that rubs me the wrong way. Its worse than gas panic in some ways.... you get a bunch of guys in there with a gaspanic mentality but they are traders and businessmen used to being in power so they're even more obnoxious. I have seen it happen several times where some bonehead hits *hard* on one of the girls in the group in spite of the fact she's holding on to her boyfriend right next to her...and youre packed in like sardines. That place is a fight waiting to happen in my opinion.

PS:I just had to go back and edit this post ....my god I really am starting to speak Engrish

[Ol Dirty Gaijin]

Krisha sounds good, but I don't think it's the one I'm thinking of.

Sometimes drop in at Who bar. Typical little Golden-Gai bar stylee. Last time they were playing all this seventies Osaka rock. Some song about a black river and rowing, another about catching a cab and it costing 892 yen?? or something. Anyway fun but blurry.

[Jushin-Thunder-Liger]

mmmmmm
My fav, for some reason, is the Manhatten Show bar, thing is ive only ever been there whilst smashed out of my mind, i tried to find it again t'other week and nobody had heard of it.
Anyone know it?, its full of Russian trannys, by the way.
Maybe ive got the name wrong

[GomiGirl]

Krisha sounds good, but I don't think it's the one I'm thinking of.

Sometimes drop in at Who bar. Typical little Golden-Gai bar stylee. Last time they were playing all this seventies Osaka rock. Some song about a black river and rowing, another about catching a cab and it costing 892 yen?? or something. Anyway fun but blurry.

Was at Krisha last night with gomichild.. a few too many gingerales later we stumbled into a cab and tortured a few random strangers and convenience store employees....

Hey GC - how you feeling?

Other bars in Golden Gai I have been know to frequent.. Kaeru, M, Evi and a few others that are no longer around.