Thread: Whats It Like?? (Living in Japan)

paper doors. im some provinces.. they have this old fashion houses.. .. actually they are more "advance in a way of living" .. using celphones. as a credit card in som e stores and malls. mini i'd's at school. battery powered taxi"s - or i think itsa rent a car thing

Out of all the people that responded so far, I may be the one with the most tiem in Japan. I lived in Tokyo for a year with the Air Force (came back to the states last March after being medically discharge from the military).

Here are some points:
1. Patients will keep you sane
2. The Japanese rail system is easy to understand and learn. I can't think of a stop I was at that didn't have the name in English - Tokyo Rail Map
3. At least in the Tokyo area, you won't starve because you can't find food. Seens there is a McDonalds on every cover. You also have Wendys, KFC, and even Dennys. At least with Wendys and McDonalds they deal with a lot of foriegner and you would have trouble. I managed to order chicken sandwiches without stuff on it and pizza from Pizza Hut without sauce (don't ask about my weird tastes).
4. You can buy all kinds of things from vending machines.
5. You can most alnmost anywhere (though I don't smoke) with the exception of Akihabara (sp?) which is Electric City (still have spots to smoke there).
6. Japanese, in general, are very friendly and helpful. Though for finding someone that understands English you will have more look with a high schooler, but not sure if they will be as nice.
7. You stand on the left side on an esculator and walk on the right side
8. If you have a cellphone, make sure it is on vibrate. You cell phone going off, especially in the train, is considered rude.
9. For starters, Animate is a chain store you want to look for for anime stuff to start. But Akihabara has a couple nice places and Nakano is my favorite stop.
10. DON'T TIP!!!

I am sure there are other things, but feel free to ask me any questions, though I most likely won't know everything. Also, if you are going to Tokyo in the near future I can give you some ideas of places to go and how to get to many of them including which stops on which lines.

Wow! You know a lot of about Tokyo for living there just one year. That is awesome. Even I, who was born and raised in Japan, don't know that much about Tokyo. Maybe it is because I live in Kyoto. Hehe...the tips were very entertaining and informative. Good Job!!!

you know this thread is a spoiler for me.

oOoOoOo thanx guys.
Schultsy...I will consult you if I have any questions!

Originally Posted by *Mayura*

Wow! You know a lot of about Tokyo for living there just one year. That is awesome. Even I, who was born and raised in Japan, don't know that much about Tokyo. Maybe it is because I live in Kyoto. Hehe...the tips were very entertaining and informative. Good Job!!!

I made it a point to go some place different every Saturday and Sunday, so like two places every weekend, for the first couple months I was there. And even though I was in the military, I wasn't living on the base. So I had to learn quick and be self reliant if I wanted to see new stuff. Also, so everyone knows, I do not speak any Japaneses other than excuse me, thank you, please, sorry, and what is it. Just proves that you can survive there and not speak the language.

Hehe...Yep...most folks can speak little bit of proper English, so you shouldn't have a lot of trouble. Wow! That is clever thinking, schultzy. If you see bits and pieces of Tokyo each day, in no time, you can get very familiar, though, it is a BIG city. Awesome! It is great to hear your stories!!!