Sup guys! Well I'm getting stationed in Okinawa Japan this July (I'm a U.S Marine) and i just wanted some hints on really great places to visit in Tokyo or anywhere in Japan for that matter. Also what the people in Japan usually treat Americans like and what the nightlife is out there? Also will I be a lot girls and guys doing cosplay and running around doing crazy things? That its bad, i just wanna be prepared.
Going to Japan!
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I dont know of any places there (havent been) but have fun
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Hang on, let me turn on the Greg Signal. This things a bitch, why do they have to put it so high up?
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Aw man, you're lucky!
If the One Piece museum's running this time of year you should try and go there.
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Hang on, let me turn on the Greg Signal. This things a bitch, why do they have to put it so high up?
I am the vengeance that calls in the night. I am the…fuck it.
Okay, big discrepency between Okinawa and Tokyo. Are you stopping in Tokyo before hitting Okinawa? Because unless the US government foots your bill, it's a bitch to travel back and forth.
Word of advice:
Okinawans aren't exactly happy with US soldiers at the moment because of their tendency to uh rape local women.
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Ill be heading to Tokyo during the July 4th weekend, but first I gotta go check in at Okinawa. And yes I know the folks at Oki aren't too pleased with the Marines right now, god they ruined it for a whole new generation of marines man…
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Awesome dude! I was planning to go to Japan this summer with my cousin but then the trip got canceled :( Have Fun~~
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Ill be heading to Tokyo during the July 4th weekend
Okay then. Hit Shibuya, Shinjuku and Harajuku along the Yamanote Line. Those are musts for anyone visiting Japan regardless of their purpose. Be sure to leave the Shibuya Station from the Hachiko Exit. You'll probably have the most fun in Shinjuku if you leave from the East Exit. Harajuku is pretty straightforward, Takeshitadoori is the one with a million people.
For anime and stuff hit Akihabara. It's hard to describe the exact location of some hole-in-the wall stores but I suggest you thoroughly explore places and ride escalators when/where you see them because they usually lead to something interesting.
If you have any specific questions I can try to answer them.
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Whats some of the best places to eat some good sushi and some fine sake, cuz i know ill be celebrating the holiday like Zoro and Luffy (intoxicated and stuffed). Also is transportation free in the cities like the trains or bus?
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I studied in Kyoto (try to get there if you can), but I did go to Tokyo for a week.
No, the bus/trains are not free, but I wouldn't call them really expensive either. You can buy day/month passes too.
Warning right now: It was my experience that the English subway/train maps in Tokyo SUCK. If I hadn't been studying my kanji I would have been screwed. Maybe it's improved in the three years since I left, but I doubt it.
Tip: If you want cheap manga, and don't mind used, find your local BookOff.
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For anime and stuff hit Akihabara. It's hard to describe the exact location of some hole-in-the wall stores but I suggest you thoroughly explore places and ride escalators when/where you see them because they usually lead to something interesting.
Personally I haven't been to Japan (although I'd love to), but I read an article on Akihabara. In the eyes of a video gamer and anime fan, it looks like heaven.
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It is pretty damn cool, although if you just want anime/video game stuff you have to wade through a lot of porn shops.
I admit to feeling slightly vulnerable being a female there at night, though.
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Whats some of the best places to eat some good sushi and some fine sake, cuz i know ill be celebrating the holiday like Zoro and Luffy (intoxicated and stuffed).
Unless you go to upscale restaurants. (Upscale for Japan means paying more than $150 just for yourself) don't expect to find any particularly amazing sushi in Tokyo. The people in the countryside boast of their delicious sushi and the people in Tokyo willingly admit that if you want to eat some of the freshest most kick-ass sushi, you need to head out to the countryside.
That said, sushi isn't exactly hard to find. My advice to you would be to hit a Japanese pub called 'izakaya'. At many of these you'll find a variety of Western, Japanese and even fusion dishes.
If you're looking specifically for a 'Japanese' izakaya that specializes in Japanese food I'd suggest a chain called 'Hana no Mai'. Here's a link for more info on it.
However, my personal favorite is Doma Doma. Their kishimen carbonara is to FUCKING KILL FOR.
Also is transportation free in the cities like the trains or bus?
Only air is free in Japan and sometimes you even have to pay for that if you visit an oxygen bar.
Forget busses. Trains rule Tokyo. You can get ANYWHERE by train. It's an impossibly extensive system that can take you literally within a half mile of anywhere that's somewhere. I would suggest stocking up on maps which there are plenty of online. However, for all the places I listed you'll only need one line, the JR Yamanote Line. It even runs in a continuous circle so it's idiot proof.
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Okinawans aren't exactly happy with US soldiers at the moment because of their tendency to uh rape local women.
Jeez, that sucks. I'd hate to be a soldier stationed their having to deal with people thinking I was a rapist. I'm surprised they can get away with that shit… then again, hello Mr. Government.
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Sup guys! Well I'm getting stationed in Okinawa Japan this July (I'm a U.S Marine) and i just wanted some hints on really great places to visit in Tokyo or anywhere in Japan for that matter. Also what the people in Japan usually treat Americans like and what the nightlife is out there? Also will I be a lot girls and guys doing cosplay and running around doing crazy things? That its bad, i just wanna be prepared.
Aside from the real subculture-y sections of the big cities, you won't really find people in cosplay or doing "crazy things" (though that last one is subjective and there's plenty of completely "normal" things that we Americans would construe as crazy). Japan on the whole is a pretty conservative country, socially speaking, although what's considered appropriate behavior is drawn along different lines than in the US.
That said, it can be a lot of fun just to explore, and I definitely recommend that you come to Kansai at some point. Kyoto and Nara are must-see for their cultural heritage, Osaka has great nightlife around Umeda and Namba, and there's plenty of other places worth checking out if only to say you've been. Of course, maybe I'm biased since I live in Kansai…
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I'm surprised they can get away with that shit… then again, hello Mr. Government.
They can't and don't get away with it. But they do it anyway.
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For anime and stuff hit Akihabara. It's hard to describe the exact location of some hole-in-the wall stores but I suggest you thoroughly explore places and ride escalators when/where you see them because they usually lead to something interesting.
OH GOD MY EYES. It's a trap.
In some places it certainly was.
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They can't and don't get away with it. But they do it anyway.
Yeah so far every time someone gets charged with a crime they get sent to the brig. Imagine some lowly Private getting sent to the brig and being stuck with a 3 star general for god knows what. But yeah its seems this escalators thing seems amazing. Ill be sure to check this out and thanks again everyone.
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That said, it can be a lot of fun just to explore, and I definitely recommend that you come to Kansai at some point. Kyoto and Nara are must-see for their cultural heritage, Osaka has great nightlife around Umeda and Namba, and there's plenty of other places worth checking out if only to say you've been. Of course, maybe I'm biased since I live in Kansai…
BOO YAH! KANSAI COMRADE!
I'm biased too, I'm a Kyoto lover through and through. (hey, that rhymed!)
Where in Kansai are you?
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Hey now, I lived in Shiga for a year, nothing against Kansai or Kinki ;)
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Eat a takoyaki for me~! thumbs up
Anyway, it sounds fun, scince I've seen all the cool stuff there in some show, I forgot but it was in the Travel Channel. Have fun~!
Greg's on my favorite people list now. For the lolz.
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Eat a takoyaki for me~! thumbs up
Drools over thinking about takoyaki…... damn it wheres Hacchan when i need him.
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I've always been more of an okonomiyaki fan myself . . . . .
Takoyaki is good, I just don't think of octopus as a "snack."
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BOO YAH! KANSAI COMRADE!
I'm biased too, I'm a Kyoto lover through and through. (hey, that rhymed!)
Where in Kansai are you?
I'm in Osaka Prefecture, just south of the city. I can ride my bike there, even, though it takes me a good hour or so to get anywhere especially interesting if I go that way. It's easier to take the train up to Abenobashi and go from there.
I've always been more of an okonomiyaki fan myself . . . . .
Takoyaki is good, I just don't think of octopus as a "snack."
Takoyaki and okonomiyaki are both worth having if you find yourself in Osaka. They don't call it "the nation's kitchen" for nothin'.
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Heh, have you seen the Anthony Bourdain No Reservations episode about Osaka?
I was smack in the middle of Kyoto. It only took, like, 5 stops on the Hankyuu line to get to the city center.
Man, I miss the Hankyuu line. Takarazuka posters and all.
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Oh hey, I'm going to Japan also! In my case it's an experience voyage, though. I'll be there from July 16th to July 31st.
I'm going with two friends of mine and we will be staying in Osaka -> Kyoto -> Tokyo (and the final day in Osaka, since our flight back to Finland leaves from KIX). We pretty much know what we'll be doing, but it won't hurt to read the other posts in this thread.
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I'll be permanently moving to Japan this October. Going to live outside of Shizuoka [the city].
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Hey! My friend and her roommate (he's stationed in Okinawa, she lives with him) live there, too. There's a good chance I might be coming to Okinawa to visit her for about a week in August. I can probably ask her some good places, plus, if I come, we should hang out. :)
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I'll be permanently moving to Japan this October.
So did you get into JET? :)
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Since we're on the subject of "Going to Japan!," one can also buy arcade games in Akihabara, too, right?
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Have sex with as many girls as you can!!
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We knew a troll would get in here eventually, SaiyaJedi.
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So did you get into JET? :)
No, I found an employer for a private English-teaching institute that's right outside the city. Pays about $25,000 a year, provides a place to live, company car, transportation allowance, really good working hours, very relaxed about dress code [she didn't mind my hair or beard], etc. We just need to work out my VISA, and then we're all set.
It pays to bug the fuck out of potential employers.
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We knew a troll would get in here eventually, SaiyaJedi.
Nah, it's okay. My reaction was mostly based on me thinking that he was playing into stereotypes about Asian women, but on further investigation, that appears not to be the case.
(Pro tip: be careful what embarrassing things you reveal about yourself online, especially in an easily-searchable web forum.)Aaaaaaaaaanyway…
I'm headed up to Mount Koya in a few weeks for an overnight at a Buddhist temple, but I was wondering if there was much to see other than the collection of sites right around Kongoubu-ji and Oku-no-In (Kuukai / Koubou Daishi's burial place and the head temple of Shingon Buddhism). Anyone have any advice?
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but on further investigation, that appears not to be the case.
(Pro tip: be careful what embarrassing things you reveal about yourself online, especially in an easily-searchable web forum.)oh no please don't look up my past post i might explode
oh dear, oh my
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Aaaaaaaaaanyway…
I'm headed up to Mount Koya in a few weeks for an overnight at a Buddhist temple, but I was wondering if there was much to see other than the collection of sites right around Kongoubu-ji and Oku-no-In (Kuukai / Koubou Daishi's burial place and the head temple of Shingon Buddhism). Anyone have any advice?
I've never been to Mount Koya, unfortunately. The biggest places I've been to in Japan are Ise, Miyajima, Todai-ji, and Fushimi Inari Taisha. Didn't manage to make it to Mount Koya though.
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Nah, it's okay. My reaction was mostly based on me thinking that he was playing into stereotypes about Asian women, but on further investigation, that appears not to be the case.
(Pro tip: be careful what embarrassing things you reveal about yourself online, especially in an easily-searchable web forum.)Aaaaaaaaaanyway…
I'm headed up to Mount Koya in a few weeks for an overnight at a Buddhist temple, but I was wondering if there was much to see other than the collection of sites right around Kongoubu-ji and Oku-no-In (Kuukai / Koubou Daishi's burial place and the head temple of Shingon Buddhism). Anyone have any advice?
Pro tip: If I cared so much I wouldn't have posted that. If you had read the post it's not exactly a well-kept secret even amongst my friends.
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my thought is, what does it have to do with any conversation, or the topic at hand in this thread.
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Okinawa is such a beautiful place everyone. It has some of the coolest beaches and its nice weather here. I'll post some pics when possible. But the people, the culture, it's a great place this land of the rising sun.
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Have sex with as many girls as you can!!
Harder to do than you think. I spent about a month around a college campus and only hooked up with one very attractive girl.
Damn they're reserved there.
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My departure to the land of the rising sun is now less than a week away.
I'm kinda panicking, because I did some calculations and I'm starting to think that my friends underrated the absolute minimum budget -> which leads to the fact that I don't have enough money to take with me.
I can feel the cold hands of stress and worry gripping my heart.
SHIT.
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oh man. :\ that's shitty. good luck. I always feel more comfortable if I know myself, rather than just leaving it to others to know for me. That and I like the independance. :)
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oh man. :\ that's shitty. good luck. I always feel more comfortable if I know myself, rather than just leaving it to others to know for me. That and I like the independance. :)
Fortunately it's okay now. I shared my worries and I had raised the budget to the skies by calculating our living expenses way too high. Inland traveling will cost us more than we expected, but otherwise everything is under control. Hopefully. I mean, I'm not the one doing all the planning and scheduling and stuff, so it's easy to end up worrying.
Right! Tomorrow I'll start packing and on Wednesday 16th we will be departing. Coolz.
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Ohh lucky you ;;!
The One Piece museum
:D