File :-(, x, )
Anonymous
How touristy is Tokyo compared to other places?

I was backpacking Europe in May and there were just too many fucken tourists. Am I going to be knee deep in weaboo if I go to the j-land?
>> Anonymous
lol labia
>> Anonymous
>>51080
where in Europe...?
>> Anonymous
>>51085

Amsterdam, Paris, Switzerland, Venice/Verona, Salzburg, Munich, Prague, Vienna.

I could have gone to low key places if I wanted to avoid tourism, but I didnt have much time to research places.

Btw, Switzerland rocks balls. Holy shit.
>> Anonymous
go to Osaka instead if you're trying to avoid the weaboos like the plague. huge city (17.5 mil pop.) but less of the touristy-whorism I think.

I was there for 10 days and loved it, check out Dotonbori for good entertainment/shopping/food. The people are said to be more casual and outgoing then Tokyo's residents.
>> Anonymous
Thanks for the tip on Osaka. I'm going to have to look into this.
>> Anonymous
Osaka is great. Everyone knows the two main areas for hanging out/shopping/entertainment are Umeda in the north and Namba/Shinsaibashi in the south.

Umeda in the north is where are the main train terminals are and it has plenty of department stores, movie theaters, bars and clubs. Some business districts and too far away and it has a wide streets and a bit of a white collar feel.

Namba in the south is jammed with people in smaller alley streets and is more lively with tons of great food, bars, small shops, etc (this is where dotonbori is).

Of course, for specific attractions are scattered all over the city in many districts.

Question about Osaka for those that have lived there: after Umeda and Namba, what's the next best district to have fun in?
>> Anonymous
Why does every picture of Japan I see on this board come from the future mega cities they have over there?

I thought Japan had beautiful country side, couldn't someone post that for once?
>> Anonymous
     File :-(, x)
>>51131
Yup I noticed that too, so here is a photo I took.

Sorry I don't exactly know the location because my classmates and I were bussed around everywhere and we just stumbled around, wide-eyed and jaw dropped. That particular photo however was taken on the way to a small mochi (gooey rice balls) making business(hut) right across from those rice fields, somewhere on the way to Kyoto maybe?. Enjoy.
>> Anonymous
     File :-(, x)
>>51131
>> Anonymous
>>51113
Depends upon what kind of fun you want to have. I should warn you that Umeda is XXXX-PENSIVE. The Hep Five mall is kind of cool -- bring a camera and ride the ferris wheel, you can get a totally sweet shot of the city, especially at dusk. There's also a really quality theater at the Hep Five. You can't miss the Hep Five, it's gigantic, red, and has a ferris wheel.

Namba is kind of fun in an Akihabara sort of way (try going to Den Den Town, which is just outside the Namba subway station), and has some pretty fun clubs and really good restaurants. Of all my favorite places to hang out, Namba was by far tops in my book. It had the best shops and is packed 24/7.

Shinsaibashi is close by too, and has a sort of Harajuku feel to it if you like that sort of thing -- rolled jeans, fashion, it's pretty neat. If you want to see goths and goth-lolita fashion, go to Tennoji.
>> Anonymous
     File :-(, x)
>>51131
Sure thing. Mountains okay with you? Taken two weeks ago.

Although there will be plenty of Japanese hiking in the mountains, you will hardly meet any foreigners there.
>> Anonymous
Lets say I get bored of Osaka. How much does it cost for a one way train to Tokyo roughly.
>> Anonymous
>>51193
Shinkansen is about ¥12000 (2½ hours) I think. Local trains ¥8000 and some 10 hours of travelling
>> Anonymous
Osaka is definitely a gem though for your desires, OP. Being only the second most populated/popular city in Japan has its benefits. Send them weaboos to Tokyo! That being said, definitely don't miss out on Tokyo (gogogo shinkansen aka bullet train) because remember, even the weaboo stuff is technically part of Japanese culture to varying degrees. Completely ignoring it is ignorance -- just do it in short doses if the anime scene is too eccentric for your tastes.
>> Anonymous
>>51168
Thanks for the Tennoji recommendation, I'll head there next time I'm looking just to bum around for a day.

I spent a year studying abroad in Kyoto and besides specific attractions I spent most of hanging out in Osaka in either Umeda or Namba (I'm quite familiar with Hep 5 and Den Den Town ^^). I'm now back in Shiga prefecture for JET and as great as Umeda and Namba are I've been looking for another spot in Osaka to hang out.

I prefer Kansai and all it's cool culture, close by cities, and friendly people to Tokyo. Though, I have to admit, Tokyo has a lot more varied districts and fun places to hang out than Osaka (Kansai's largest city), it seems.
>> Anonymous
>>51193
If you get bored with the second metropolis of Japan, going to the biggest is a little silly. It would be more reasonable to stay in the Kansai area and check out Kyoto for culture (and for a higher foreigner to pop ratio than even Tokyo), Kobe for a cool modern city, and Nara for culture and it's awesome deer park.
>> Anonymous
OP, you do realize you were one of the those tourists that you are complaining about?
>> Anonymous
>>51206
Is it true that Kobe is really expensive?
>> Anonymous
>>51192


I need to hike these mountains.
>> Anonymous
     File :-(, x)
Osaka swaps people who 'live 2 party WHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!' with weeaboos for annoying foreigner subgroups. Weeaboos at the very least stick to their districts and don't cause trouble (street puke, picking fights, etc).

Here's some rice.
>> Anonymous
>>51192
http://stuffwhitepeoplelike.com/2008/02/20/71-being-the-only-white-person-around/

>>51080
You know as a backpacker you're a tourist plus an annoying ass backpack right? And when you get that thing on a train in Japan...
>> Anonymous
>>51238
guilty as charged regarding the white person thing =P, altho seems most foreigners mysteriously adopt this mentality...
I walked out of a train station and BAM! 3 white dudes sittin on bicycles. We both glared at each other for 3 seconds and then I asked them where they were from and how the fuck they got to Osaka (they were like the first gaijin I had seen in a week besides my classmates). Sometimes you can't help being an attention whore in Japan lol.
>> Anonymous
i saw a Anthony Bourdain on japan he spent most of his time in osaka. there big on food i guess and baseball.
osaka tigers lul
>> Anonymous
>>51228
Taken from a mountain-top in the middle of the Southern Japanese Alps main mountain ridge. Somewhere between Shiomi-dake and Arakawa-yama, near Sanpuku-t?ge. This top is called Eboshi-dake, but there are dozens of mountains called that, so that won't help you find it on a map.

>>51238
Always good fun when you go hiking in the mountains and you're departing from Tokyo in the morning.

"Suimasen!" (big ass white guy with 20kg backpack squeezes into the packed train)

Japanese hikers do this to of course, but slightly more elegantly.
>> Anonymous
Is it ever sunny in Japan? Most pictures I see of the place have this grey, somber sky.
>> Anonymous
     File :-(, x)
>>51247
That episode put Dotonbori on the map for me. I remember he also said once that Japan was the only country that he would visit just for the food. For those who've been to Japan before, what were your favorite restaurants, dishes, etc?

Pic is Kamikatsu in Shikoku
>> Anonymous
>>51255
Spring/early summer is the rainy season (like, fuckin rains everyday with 90-100% humidity), which also happens to coincide with tourist season. Sucks because most of my photos are overcast :/.

>>51259
Yup, Bourdain did well in Osaka so you can pretty much not go wrong with what he ate. Takoyaki, okonomiyaki are what Osaka's most famous for food-wise but don't miss out on the conveyor belt sushi bars (don't remember the Japanese name). Stay the fuck away from natto (fermented soybeans) though.
>> Anonymous
Tokyo is so big that you hardly ever see foreigners unless you are at Hachiko or in Roppongi.
>> Anonymous
     File :-(, x)
Japan is awesome. You'll only stumble other tourists if you go to the obvious areas.
>> Anonymous
>>51286
In fact, when those of us that live here see another gaijin in a rural area (as I did in a rural part of Okayama-ken the other week) the common practice is to give each other a little nod. If you live in rural Japan you usually consider other gaijin a good thing and the nod just kind of acknowledges each other's existence. Some call it the gaisatsu (i.e. gaijin + aisatsu).
>> Anonymous
>>51088

Not to threadjack, but why did Switzerland rock balls?
>> Anonymous
     File :-(, x)
>>51382

OP here;

Switzerland rocks balls because;

People are friendly! (unlike all other eurofags I met) I would be walking down the streets and girls would just smile at you. Not a smile like "I wanna fuck you" or anything, but a nice polite one which suffices. The air is so clean, the views are breathtaking, every train is on time and it's not crowded with tourists. I stayed on a mountain in Lauterbrunnen and it was like I was in middle earth. I wish my camera lense didn't get caught in the mirror, I would have had a perfect shot.


Anyway, back to Japan. I know i'm a foreigner as well and i'm being a hypocrite. The truth is I don't like traveling anywhere that has too many people like me doing the same thing because

A) It doesn't feel very adventurous or exciting
B) I'm a little attention whore and I like to stand out.

Sad but true.
>> Anonymous
>>51399
lol Japan is for you OP. It's got shit tons to do and you'll stick out like a sore thumb if you're anything other then from Asian descent.
>> Anonymous
>>51399
Learn the Japanese phrase for, "Thank you, Korean."

You know, so you can "stick out" from other tourists.
>> Anonymous
>How touristy is Tokyo compared to other places?
Very to not at all. Places like Akihabara and Harajuku on Sundays are packed with gaijin. In other places, foreigners will catch your eye because they're so rare.

>How much does it cost for a one way train to Tokyo roughly.
If you plan to travel a lot, consider buying a Japan Rail Pass, grants free rides on most JR lines (not on the Nozomi Shinkansen though). Can NOT be bought in Japan, do in advance.

>Is it ever sunny in Japan? Most pictures I see of the place have this grey, somber sky.
Hardly. It's usually pretty hot and humidity is extremely high (subtropical climate in Tokyo) but I haven't seen a clear sky there very often.

>Switzerland
>People are friendly!
Seems like you experienced a different Switzerland than I did for the past 25 years or you haven't been to Zurich.
>> Anonymous
>>51399
but but but
what about Hostel?!
>> Anonymous
>>51131
i'll tell you why, because the landscape looks awesome.
simple answer and one you probably already knew.

but i know what you mean
and it doesn't even have to be a picture of the countryside, but at least a photo of the cherr blossom lined streets along the Meguro River
or the small streets along Roppongi, the Aoyama Cemetery.. anything. all still in central Tokyo.

Google streetview (coupled with wikimapia) is great visual guide.
>> Anonymous
>>51399
yeah my aunt recently went to Berne and said it was amongst her favorite place in Europe.
>> Anonymous
>>51135

Wow! that friggin looks like a upgraded kick ass version of where my family used to live. I live in PR and my parents come from the farm or greenish part of PR but now we are on the city part. Makes them sad to be on this part of our country : (
>> Anonymous
>>51436

OP Here.

Bern is where I went and it was my favorite city. Zurich I stayed the hell away from, so I can't comment on that place.
>> Anonymous
>>51264
>>Tokyo is so big that you hardly ever see foreigners unless you are at Hachiko or in Roppongi.
Or Akihabara, Shinjuku, Ikebukuro, Ueno, Tokyo, Shinagawa, Harajuku, Ginza, etc.
>> Anonymous
>>51135

If you like this sort of thing I would recommend Okinawa.
Just stay away from Chatan because the military personnel there are total meatheads.

Up north around Higashi-son is really nice, from the highest point in the village you can see nothing but fields and rainforest for miles around.
>> Anonymous
>>51286
That's the cutest fucking cat I've ever seen