Might be going this weekend with my coworker! Seems intimidating though, it's huge! I went to a couple smaller places on the weekend and got some welcome decks tho
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Japan ERA |OT| We all お箸上手 and 日本語ペラペラ in here!
- Thread starter Mailenstein
- Start date
In Akihabara right now and I'm looking for a place that sells New Nintendo 3DS faceplates. Been to a few game stores, big and small, and still no luck. Anyone know where I could find some or point me in the right direction?
Hope you have fun anyways!
They had some in the big Yodobashi back in the day.
Heya, JapanEra.
In March, I'll be moving to Tokyo (Hakusan District, Bunkyō) for 6 months. I've spent most of my free time researching, but I have two questions that I can't find great answers for.
I primarily commute by bike. Would it be worth it to buy a quality used bike when I get to Tokyo and sell it later (... or disassemble It and bring it home with me)? Is it a huge hassle to pay for my bike to be shipped/checked on the plane both ways?
I am a very short and petite girl, and finding a quality hybrid bike that fits me was a challenge. I have read that registering a foreign bike can be a pain, but the bike I own is the perfect bike for my needs in Tokyo (Trek Verve 2). If anyone has experience with bikes, or knows of a great local bike shop, I'd love to hear about it.
...how bad are the slopes around Hakusan? :D I'm not out of shape by any means, but I don't bike a lot of hills where I am now. Should I start?
How would you find your way around Tokyo's local music scene? Particularly for genres like post-rock, shoegaze, etc... Tokyo Gig Guide seems promising, but the forums are just about dead. I imagine going to a couple of shows at popular venues will help me find my way into smaller ones, much like it is in other cities; but are there any recommended resources?
Finally, if anyone wants to throw out anything (seriously) about the area right around Bunkyō/Toyo University, that'd be great. I plan on going to some Giants games, at least.
In March, I'll be moving to Tokyo (Hakusan District, Bunkyō) for 6 months. I've spent most of my free time researching, but I have two questions that I can't find great answers for.
I primarily commute by bike. Would it be worth it to buy a quality used bike when I get to Tokyo and sell it later (... or disassemble It and bring it home with me)? Is it a huge hassle to pay for my bike to be shipped/checked on the plane both ways?
I am a very short and petite girl, and finding a quality hybrid bike that fits me was a challenge. I have read that registering a foreign bike can be a pain, but the bike I own is the perfect bike for my needs in Tokyo (Trek Verve 2). If anyone has experience with bikes, or knows of a great local bike shop, I'd love to hear about it.
...how bad are the slopes around Hakusan? :D I'm not out of shape by any means, but I don't bike a lot of hills where I am now. Should I start?
How would you find your way around Tokyo's local music scene? Particularly for genres like post-rock, shoegaze, etc... Tokyo Gig Guide seems promising, but the forums are just about dead. I imagine going to a couple of shows at popular venues will help me find my way into smaller ones, much like it is in other cities; but are there any recommended resources?
Finally, if anyone wants to throw out anything (seriously) about the area right around Bunkyō/Toyo University, that'd be great. I plan on going to some Giants games, at least.
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As for your bike question, there's a ton of short and petite girls using bikes here, so finding something that fits you in any bike shop (there's a ton of them around Tokyo, even in less populated areas) shouldn't be much of a challenge. If you just need it for commuting, you could probably get a half decent bike for 10-20k yen. If you want to go on longer treks, something better would obviously be nice to have, but I can't really comment on shipping an actual bike from overseas.
Do you get a livable salary? Gonna be making the move later next year and want a more personable anecdote if possible haha.
It's more than livable, but I'm also on the JET program, which is the highest paying ALT job there is AFAIK. It's supposedly pretty hard to get into, but I hear different things about that too.
Thanks, I've talked to a few other people and it does seem like buying from a shop when I get there is the best option. :)
I would hope it doesn't make too much a difference...
I hope to get one of the less conventional jobs on the island within the next 7-8 months (considering I'm not fresh out of University or anything) before moving on to what my degree allows. I'm worrisome because I hear stories about the wages but I consider too that I rarely shop or eat lavishly.
Hahahahahaha
(I've gotten past that point of hating hearing it over and over again to the point that it's silly and I just laugh when I hear it).
My working holiday visa is confirmed! I am going to Japan for a year.
Holy shit it feels surreal.
Time to start research.
Holy shit it feels surreal.
Time to start research.
Thanks! I have been wanting to get into anime figure production industry, so this would be a great opportunity to concentrate as well as trying to gain exposure by going to events and meeting with people etc. Probably not too much travelling around. I plan to arrive at Japan in early March next year, so there are still plenty of time for planning.
Hey Japan Era,
I am in Osaka for 4 days on business, I would be typically working from around 7am-6pm on daily basis which really limits my ability to check out the city. I would have one day off in Tokyo before leaving, any recommendations for where I can find a good kimono/yukata shop? And how easy is it to ship back home, as the two postal offices I walked into dont speak English at all.
So far the food has been amazing and this might sound weird but the Japanese are too quite and polite for my taste. Without me requesting they have brought halal food (I actually eat everything) and set up a prayer room in their office (I dont pray), they are too nice. The are so nice that I feel obligated to do something in return.
Thanks in advance
I am in Osaka for 4 days on business, I would be typically working from around 7am-6pm on daily basis which really limits my ability to check out the city. I would have one day off in Tokyo before leaving, any recommendations for where I can find a good kimono/yukata shop? And how easy is it to ship back home, as the two postal offices I walked into dont speak English at all.
So far the food has been amazing and this might sound weird but the Japanese are too quite and polite for my taste. Without me requesting they have brought halal food (I actually eat everything) and set up a prayer room in their office (I dont pray), they are too nice. The are so nice that I feel obligated to do something in return.
Thanks in advance
Lol yeah what the heck. I live in Tokyo and going to Osaka was weird. I thought everyone was rude and boisterous by comparison.
Seriously. It might sound really silly, but that's exactly how I felt when I went on a trip to Osaka. And I totally expected to love it there.
I love the food but everything else I could leave. Will def go back just for okonomiyaki.
When I first moved to Japan I lived in Osaka. Then when I moved to Tokyo I thought everyone was cold and unfriendly.
I lived 4 years in Tokyo and have been living in Osaka for the past 6.5 years. I go back to Tokyo 1-2 times a year, but you are right, people are cold and unfriendly there. Always so distant.
This is my opinion even though I am just another tourist. People in Tokyo are cold while in Osaka, people are much more humorous and friendly.
I honestly never felt the "cold" part myself. Interactions with regular people depend on their personality, and it's not like I'm chatting up random strangers. I also have no problem with service people just doing their jobs. That said, it's a complaint that I see often, so I assume there's something to it.
Oh, I thought this was sarcasm. Bigger cities are usually less polite. Ugh I wont be able to handle them being more polite.
Now that you mention it, maybe 距離感 is the right word, rather than "cold".
I think that 距離感 is what I like about Tokyo. I can live my own damn life and not have to interact or fake being friendly with people I don't know.
There's a real reserved politeness that suits me nicely.
I do like the occasional time that I have friendly small talk with someone, though. It's usually because it's a rarity, so I'm like "woah, someone talked to me," but I'd get sick of it if it was every day.
There's a real reserved politeness that suits me nicely.
I do like the occasional time that I have friendly small talk with someone, though. It's usually because it's a rarity, so I'm like "woah, someone talked to me," but I'd get sick of it if it was every day.
Does anyone have real life examples of this Osaka rudeness. It's said all the time but I don't know what people's interactions are with strangers daily that they would able to determine this from trips. Are the conbini employees scoffing at you instead of greeting? Are people shoving you on the train? I've only been a couple of times but noticed zero difference in the interactions with people.
The trip when that happened to me was 5 or so years ago, so I sadly don't remember what it was exactly.
Same, I like it when people in stores etc. are just being polite. Of course I always try to have the same polite attitude towards everyone.
(I'm from Poland, where cashiers can be extremely rude on a daily basis, so Tokyo feels like heaven in that regard.)
Convenient!! Maybe people are more rude the more west you go. Will test out the levels of thuggery in Fukuoka this week.
Same here. Actually I have major culture shock whenever I visit my parents in the US. I get talked to so casually by the immigration officers. Last time I was there I went to a fast food restaurant and ordered something and the person taking my order was chewing gum talking back to the manager etc. unreal.
Word, I went back to New Zealand for the first time a couple of months ago, and people in shops asking how my day was going was really jarring. Also being able to use kiwi slang to randos is a novelty
Anyone picking up Judge Eyes today? I preordered on Rakuten, then realized I might not have time to play it right now so I went to cancel but couldn't. Might return it once it shows up, but I haven't decided yet. I'm excited as hell to see what that thing is but also Dragon Quest Builders 2 is right around the corner...
Sometimes games there are cheaper or the same price as Amazon, but I have a rakuten credit card I earn points with, so it ends up cheaper for me. I also don't like supporting amazon so I'll generally check rakuten first for anything I wanna buy and then go with the cheapest option.
p.s. I decided to keep Judge Eyes, woops. I figured it's not gonna get any cheaper in the month or so it takes me to finally start it, so whatever.
I am. Aimyon is awesome as always. Glad they got Chiko-chan on there too.
Why? I don't think I know of Chiko-chan outside of seeing her last yer (iirc) but what's the appeal?
I just want more Arashi
