Going to Japan for two weeks

[Adabiviak]

I will be in Japan for two weeks in April (Kyoto), first time there. Anyone else been/live there? I'm interested in things worth seeing, things to avoid, fun things to do, etc.

 

[15357]

I've been to Kyoto.


Don't buy food. It's awesomely expensive. Also imported from China. Streets are too narrow.

I'd say the nighttime is very interesting, possibly for any Japanese city. Very cyberpunk.

 

[DEATHMASTER]

I hope you die.



Have fun. If you look Asian and don't know Japanese, you're ****ed.

 

[Viperidae]

Don't buy food. It's awesomely expensive. Also imported from China. Streets are too narrow.

You'd hate Canada.

 

[Raziaar]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V17duGlHEYY

 

[the cow says moo]

****ing Weeaboo.

 

[63]

Cover your bum:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kancho

 

[VirusType2]

Cover your bum:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kancho

See also

* Boong-Ga Boong-Ga, a video game for the Korean and Japanese market that allows the player to engage in simulated anal probing.

something for everybody.

 

[Warped]

i hope to see you on TV on one of those ridiculous game shows doing something insane and inhuman

 

[ktimekiller]

Cover your bum:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kancho

Ah, reminds me of all the times such jokes were played without shame while I was in grade school in Korea

 

[15357]

Ah, reminds me of all the times such jokes were played without shame while I was in grade school in Korea

:|

Why the **** did we do that anyway? We all seem to have suddenly stopped in middle school.

 

[blackout]

never been myself, but I speak good conversational japanese. feel free to ask questions if you need to kow any simple phrases.

 

[15357]

never been myself, but I speak good conversational japanese. feel free to ask questions if you need to kow any simple phrases.

How do you say: "Drop your weapons and surrender?"

It doesn't have to be exact.

 

[DEATHMASTER]

"Ore wa kuso kankokujin yarou, toire wa doko desu ka"

not exact.

 

[bam23]

bring godzilla repellant

 

[15357]

"Ore wa kuso kankokujin yarou, toire wa doko desu ka"

not exact.

I actually know enough Japanese to know that the sentence means:

"I am 'kuso' Korean bastard, where is the toilet (polite tone)?"

I don't know what kuso is, though.

 

[nurizeko]

I was in Tokyo for 3 months. I learned nothing.

Have fun.

 

[AKIRA]

Get ass in some nice Mugen tuned Honda products.

 

[Warbie]

Kyoto's great. See some temples, eat some weird food.

 

[Barnz]

cover your butthole

 

[The Monkey]

Have fun. If you look don't know Japanese, you're ****ed.

Fixed.

 

[CptStern]

ah japan, you so crazy

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3yO3hg_LxmY

 

[Barnz]

usavich is awesome

 

[nurizeko]

That was....um, that was something. (' . ')

 

[Laivasse]

Kyoto's indeed great. It just feels cosy and homely despite being mostly camera fodder. I hope you like temples since you'll have temples up the wazoo, but I've forgotten the names of most of the recommended ones. Just google 'Kyoto temples' and read up on which ones sound most worth visiting from among all the usual suspects like Kinkaku-ji, Byodo-in, Ryoan-ji... Most of the better known or prettier ones demand a small entrance fee, but you can find lots of decent tourist fodder just by wandering around and checking out lesser known places.

Check Higashiyama for Kiyomizu shrine, plus ye olde trad style streets & whatnot.

Gion is also a nice part of olde-Kyoto to bumble around while looking for geisha to snap, plus it's close to central Shijo street for shopping and cheeseburgers.

There's some nice scenery and a monkey park out west in Arashiyama. Nijo castle is worth a visit, I guess, then there's the old imperial palace and grounds as well as a glut of other stuff to fill up the afternoons.

Kyoto has great subway and rail networks, so you should get a map with romanised station names for easy travel between all the sightseeing spots. If you're there for two weeks, you may as well visit nearby Nara and see the deer and the big Buddha too.

Just be aware that, as with most famous tourist attractions, most of this stuff has the potential to be very underwhelming should you go there expecting to have your mind blown.

 

[DEATHMASTER]

I actually know enough Japanese to know that the sentence means:

"I am 'kuso' Korean bastard, where is the toilet (polite tone)?"

I don't know what kuso is, though.

shit.

 

[mortiz-Redux]

just don't get raped by any tentacle monsters

 

[Adabiviak]

I've been to Kyoto.

Don't buy food. It's awesomely expensive. Also imported from China. Streets are too narrow.

I'd say the nighttime is very interesting, possibly for any Japanese city. Very cyberpunk.

What do you recommend for food, or should I just expect to pay a lot for it (which is fine, I figure everything will be relatively expensive).

never been myself, but I speak good conversational japanese. feel free to ask questions if you need to kow any simple phrases.

I will - let's start with two basics:
Where's the bathroom?
No onions, please.
Thank you (arigato?)

Kyoto's indeed great. It just feels cosy and homely despite being mostly camera fodder. I hope you like temples since you'll have temples up the wazoo, but I've forgotten the names of most of the recommended ones. Just google 'Kyoto temples' and read up on which ones sound most worth visiting from among all the usual suspects like Kinkaku-ji, Byodo-in, Ryoan-ji... Most of the better known or prettier ones demand a small entrance fee, but you can find lots of decent tourist fodder just by wandering around and checking out lesser known places.

Check Higashiyama for Kiyomizu shrine, plus ye olde trad style streets & whatnot.

Gion is also a nice part of olde-Kyoto to bumble around while looking for geisha to snap, plus it's close to central Shijo street for shopping and cheeseburgers.

There's some nice scenery and a monkey park out west in Arashiyama. Nijo castle is worth a visit, I guess, then there's the old imperial palace and grounds as well as a glut of other stuff to fill up the afternoons.

Kyoto has great subway and rail networks, so you should get a map with romanised station names for easy travel between all the sightseeing spots. If you're there for two weeks, you may as well visit nearby Nara and see the deer and the big Buddha too.

Just be aware that, as with most famous tourist attractions, most of this stuff has the potential to be very underwhelming should you go there expecting to have your mind blown.

Thanks - I'll look those places up. It sounds like you spent some time there?

 

[Azner]

I actually know enough Japanese to know that the sentence means:

"I am 'kuso' Korean bastard, where is the toilet (polite tone)?"

I don't know what kuso is, though.

Wo shi han ren wan ba dan. Ma fan ni, che shou zai na li?

 

[Laivasse]

Thanks - I'll look those places up. It sounds like you spent some time there?

I spent a while in Japan but only a few weeks in Kyoto. Essentially, for Kyoto I just borrowed a friend's Lonely Planet guidebook and visited all the places that sounded coolest. It never let me down once, even down to details like cheap hotels. Since I was on foot and solo most of the time, travelling from site to site also allowed me to investigate the occasional curiosity or hidden gem. I never did visit Nara, though.

People in Kansai (western Japan, inc. Kyoto) tend to be very warm and hospitable, so for sightseeing at least you should get by fine with or without Japanese. One time, myself and a Chinese friend were wandering around aimlessly near Tofuku-ji, when a little old lady pulled up in a car and urged us to get in, promising to drive us wherever we wanted. She ended up driving us halfway across the city to a temple of her own recommendation, purely out of a desire to be friendly (although she actually put me in a foul mood for the rest of the day by babbling incomprehensibly about Harry Potter, insulting my Japanese and asking the Chinese guy why I was acting so 'cold' by sitting quietly in the back of the car). But yeah, kansai folk are nice like that.

In any case I'd recommend getting a guidebook of some kind (speaking of which, Lonely Planet's Kyoto page is probably worth checking out). Visit the obligatory sightseeing no-brainers like kinkakuji, nijo castle and kiyomizu-dera, check the guidebook for whatever else catches your eye, draw a few circles on a map, and the holiday just plans itself. Oh, and check to see if your visit coincides with any local festivals, since they're mostly always memorable. If nothing else, April is cherry blossom season so you'll probably see plenty of Japanese getting drunk under cherry trees in Maruyama park.

 

[unozero]

****ing envy......ARGH

 

[15357]

What do you recommend for food, or should I just expect to pay a lot for it (which is fine, I figure everything will be relatively expensive).

Buy from one of those street vendors - the ones that look clean. Try to find one with an octopus painted on it. Most of those street vendors are good, and are quite tasty, and I'd bet you'd want to experience new exotic foods since you're a tourist.

But as for meals, I dunno.

Wo shi han ren wan ba dan. Ma fan ni, che shou zai na li?

ENGLISH, DO YOU SPEAK IT!?

 

[Adabiviak]

lol, thanks. That link has some good tips.

 

[OmegaX]

 

[Azner]

Buy from one of those street vendors - the ones that look clean. Try to find one with an octopus painted on it. Most of those street vendors are good, and are quite tasty, and I'd bet you'd want to experience new exotic foods since you're a tourist.

But as for meals, I dunno.



ENGLISH, DO YOU SPEAK IT!?

Bu.
Bu Jiang Ying Yu.