Don't miss that photo! (Japan pt. 1)
Jan 10, 04:46 pm
When you go on holiday, you take photos, right? With the tiny size of digital cameras these days, and the massive amounts of storage on them, it’s hard to find a single person that doesn’t throw a camera in their bag whenever they travel. So once you’ve read up on what kind of equipment to take, what are some of the best opportunities for photos?
Reader Sushifairy writes in with some tips on Photo opportunities not to be missed when travelling in Japan:
Harajuku on a Sunday (Tokyo)
To see the cos-play (costume play) people in their full goth/manga/just plain unusual regalia, turn right as you leave the train station at Harajuku in Tokyo. Sunday afternoon is the best time to see groups of young people looking like they’ve just walked out of the pages of a comic book or stepped off the movie set for ‘Blade Runner’.
The Flickr group on Harajuku is a wealth of information.
Kiyomizudera temple, Kyoto (Kyoto)
A beautiful temple at any time, but Autumn really brings out the ‘wow’ factor as the grounds are literally covered with trees that turn all shades of yellow, red, orange and brown.
The climb up / the summit of Mt Fuji (Japan)
Most people aim to reach the top of Fuji by sunrise. Not being in top physical condition, my group had about 1 ½ hours of stunning views (clouds, glittering lakes, smaller peaks) after sun-up to help us get through our pains and reach the summit.
Shibuya walkway (Tokyo)
Famed by countless movies (think ‘Lost in Translation’ for one), the multi-angled zebra crossing in the front of Shibuya station is a must-see on a trip to Tokyo. Photos taken from above or at street level both show the busy chaos that accompanies the green man walking.
Here’s some photos of the crossing.
Ferris wheel on top of Hep 5 building, Osaka (Osaka)
As well as boasting countless shops, the Hep 5 building near Umeda station in Osaka has a big red ferris wheel plopped right on top of it. Operating day and night, you can check out Japan’s third largest city in all its sprawling glory.
A window in any high building in Tokyo (Tokyo)
To get an idea of the sheer vastness that is the metropolis of Tokyo, one can either pay to visit a viewing platform, or, for the financially embarrassed, take a ride in a hotel elevator and look out a bathroom window. Buildings stretch to the horizon in all directions – the city seems to never stop, both in life and in distance.
Snow festival, Sapporo (Sapporo)
As an Australian who had never seen snow until she was 27, a whole festival devoted to the white stuff was fun. From snow sculptures to ice carvings, to marvelling at huge piles of snow on the side of the roads and then making my very first snow man, the snow festival took up the whole memory card of my digital camera.
TBE Travel Tip: If you do want to get up a high building in Tokyo on the cheap, you can’t do much better than the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building which is also commonly referred to as the Tokyo Tochou (City Hall) for short. Both of the massive towers for this building feature observation decks and from the 45th floor (202 metres up) they offer an awesome view of the city, on a clear day you can even make out Mt. Fuji. Best of all, they’re totally free. It’s an easy 10-minute walk from the West exit of Shinjuku Sta. on the JR Yamanote line, just head towards the big buildings in a cluster and the biggest of them all is the Tochou. If you’re coming by subway, it’s directly connected to Tochomae Sta. on the Toei subway Oedo Line.
The best time to visit is in the early morning in winter or right before they close the gates in Summer. If you’re lucky you can have almost the entire floor to yourself. The observatories are generally open between 9:30-17:30 and they stop taking admissions around 30 minutes before closing time. The North Observatory is closed on Monday and the South Observatory is closed on Tuesday and both are closed over the New year period (Des. 30-Jan. 3). Also located in this building is one of the three branches of the Tokyo Metropolitan Tourist Office which features a wealth of free advice and maps for tourists and visitors to Tokyo should definitely stop by and grab a list of things to do, after all – it’s free.
It's 2007
Jan 9, 08:56 pm
After a much needed holiday break, we’re back for 2007 and just as committed to bringing you the freshest tips to help you through the wilderness that is budget travel in Asia. Updates from tomorrow!
Seldomly Asked Questions
Dec 13, 11:38 am
Ever have a burning but completely obscure questions about Japan that you wanted answered but never found out about. The JAPAN SAQ is an amazing resource of some truly bizarre facts about Japan. Like “What do Japanese People wear underneath their Kimonos?” “How do the JR and Subway workers get home at night after the last train has left?” and “What’s the origin or purpose of the curtains hanging at the top of the doorway from many Japanese restaurants and sometimes shops?”
One of my favourite answers is this:
I read an article that said there is a Japanese society that sues every comic company that brings comic characters with four fingers to Japan, unless high amounts of money are being paid. The article said that four fingers once was the sign for stupid butcher’s apprentices or something like that and that it is still very rude to show someone four fingers. It also said that Disney pays millions per year, to make sure Mickey Mouse doesn’t need a fifth finger. Is that true? I think it’s strange but after reading your site I don’t think it’s impossible.
A. It is true that there are very four-fingered cartoon characters in Japan. There are two reasons. The first is that Yakuza often cut off their little fingers, so four-fingered characters would look like gangsters. The other is that there is a caste of people in Japan called Burakumin who have traditionally been discriminated against. They were the Japanese equivalent of the India’s untouchables and often performed undesirable jobs like butchery of animals and leather work. Holding up four fingers is a way to indicate Burakumin, because the four fingers look like a four legged animal. This is probably the group that Max is referring to in his question. As far as I can tell however, the Disney story is a myth, but it is true that when the British children’s program Bob the Builder came to Japan, he was given a fifth finger because they did not want him to look like a Yakuza.
There’s even a story about it on the BBC. The more you know about a culture, the easier it is to get around while you’re immersed in it. In fact, if you read up on some of these factoids, you’ll find out things that many Japanese don’t know.
Downhill From Here
Dec 4, 08:47 pm
It’s a snow-crazy day here on The Budget East. Metropolis, one of the biggest English-language street mags in Japan, have just published their Winter Sports Hit List and it’s a real beauty, featuring information on all the major ski-fields around Japan including Nagano, Gunma, Tochigi, Niigata, Niseko and Yamagata. There’s tips on how to get there, where to stay and when to go. Also mentioned is a great competition at SnowJapan, giving Metropolis readers the chance to win ten one-day lift tickets (five for GALA Yuzawa and five for Iwappara) if you enter before December 15th. Go to it!
Niseko, Japan
Dec 4, 08:20 pm
Niseko, Japan: Downhill Skiing in the Land of the Rising Sun is an excellent travel article in the New York Times talking about the enormous boom in budget ski-travel, particularly Australians, to Niseko, Hokkaido:
JAPAN is a country with extensive mountain ranges, literally hundreds of ski resorts and plentiful snow, yet a language barrier and the country’s distance from Western markets have long prevented it from becoming a major international ski destination.
That’s starting to change, especially at a resort called Niseko. Situated on Hokkaido, the northernmost of Japan’s main islands, Niseko has become wildly popular among Australians, who are attracted by the chance to ski world-class snow without suffering the jet lag they associate with North American and European resorts.
If you’re coming from Australia, Sta Travel has some crazy cheap deals on bundled travel to Niseko. The best time is in January or February, athough the season can last until early May on colder years. SnowJapan has an excellent travel guide to the region and is an excellent resource to any snow-related sport in Japan.
TBE Travel Tip: If you’re travelling around Japan on a JR Pass and want a cheap way up to the fields, the Niseko Ski Express runs in season (December 18 until March 26) from the New Chitose Airport departing at 12:51 and from Sapporo departing at 08:03, and runs direct to Niseko every day. Regular cost is ¥4560 but free for JR Pass holders, and it makes the trip in about 2 hours. If you arrive out of season, you can fight with local trains and change in Otaru, or a better bet is one of the express buses from New Chitose Airport which make the trip to Niseko in around 2 and a half hours and cost about ¥2500.