Yo, hello everyone. I know I don't talk much but I'm headed to Japan in a couple weeks (my first… - Feed Post by ztpan
Yo, hello everyone. I know I don't talk much but I'm headed to Japan in a couple weeks (my first time in Japan, yippee) I'm going to be in Osaka and Tokyo for most of the time. I guess I'm not so much worried about my language skills (I feel pretty confident even tho I know I'm not perfect), just a little nervous about being there, alone, for the very first time. Anyone out there who has been to Japan/lives in Japan that could give me some tips or advice? ;A;
posted by ztpan
Comments 8
What exact tips are you interested in? I've been to Japan and coming back this year. Been to Osaka, Kyoto, Hiroshima, Kochi and many other smaller places. I've avoided Tokyo.
I went to Japan last year, for one month. It was my first time ever: going abroad, in an airport, on a plane, staying in a hotel/hostel/... I'd virtually never used trains before either. I didn't use any tours or travel agencies. Before going, the only accomodation I booked was for the very first few nights of my trip... This is coming from someone who has always lived at home with his parents, so I it's not like I even have much experience of living independently either. And yet... I went on my own!!
Staying in Osaka was my favourite part of my trip, so I think you'll enjoy your time there. In that one month I also stayed in Tokyo, Kyoto, Hiroshima, Nagasaki, and Yokohama. From those places I stayed, I also briefly visited various other locations such as Nara, Tochigi, Gunma, Saitama,...
My main regret were not having practiced actually "speaking" Japanese before going (only focussed on "reading" it). I was able to understand usually at least 50% of what people were saying, but I could barely say anything at all to them in Japanese. A few of the cool people I met barely understood any English. I was a bit sad that I couldn't have better conversations with them. Even though I had a lot of head knowledge about vocabulary and grammar, I couldn't make much use of it without previous practice of speaking my own sentences in Japanese.
Another thing I regret was spending one month there... Before my trip I thought even one month was very and the absolute limit, considering my lack of any travelling experience. However, towards the end of my trip I really wished I had decided to go for at least two months!
There was an insane amount of stuff I had to learn, so I'm not even sure where to begin in regards to giving tips. But anyway, since even I managed okay, I'm sure you'll get on fine too. ^^
Just think: I can do this!
I've stayed in Osaka for one month, two times! I recommend Umeda and Nanba, they are pretty close to each other. In Nanba there is a section called Nipponbashi, which is like Osaka's miniature version of Akihabara and Nanba also has a big night life scene if you're interested in that, and an underground mall area. If you haven't finalized your hotel preparations, an area called Nishinari-ku has super cheap hotels/hostels and that's where I stayed (under $20 a night but the bathrooms are shared). And I don't have much experience in Tokyo so I can't help you there, sorry.
When eating at a fast food restaurant in Japan, they don't take off certain things out of whatever you order, like the states, we will remove certain ingredients such as lettuce, onions, sauce, etc. but in Japan, they don't do that, you get it as it is.- @wigglysquire, The place you stayed might even be the same one as me! I spent a week in Nishinari-ku. I didn't realise until after I left was the "biggest slum in Japan" and has the "largest red-light-district". Although, one of the very first things I saw upon stepping into the area was a rat running across the road! Yet still I loved staying there, especially thanks to how many cool people I met. (Btw, did you happen to meet an old ex-US military guy name Bruce while you were there?)...
Nishinari-ku:
https://www.tofugu.com/japan/nishinari/
—Check out this article!! I'm so glad I hadn't read this before going there... as I might have missed out! I'd definitely highly recommend the place for groups, or solo male travellers, but maybe not sure I'd go out of my way to recommend this specific place to an 18 yr/old female travelling solo.. :P 
Wow, these are really helpful and encouraging to read. Thank you all so much for your help and comments. I really appreciate it :D
Oh, and just for information's sake: I will not be travelling alone lol. I'm not quite bold enough to do that yet. I'll be traveling with a group of people I know and we already have hotel reservations set up. I appreciate your kind feedback however ^^- @mog86uk
Wow that article makes Nishinari sounds a lot worse than it actually is. But yea, I definitely don't recommend it to a female who is traveling alone. If I had read that article before going to Japan I probably wouldn't have stayed in Nishinari lol. Maybe just a couple of visits during the day or early evening.
I was there two years ago. I don't remember meeting the military guy, but I met ALOT of people there. I stayed at a place right around the corner from the police station and I regularly ate at the really good curry shop that was fairly new back then, Yakumido. https://www.facebook.com/yakumido.curry/
