Something to look forward to later this year...

[anghara]

Getting lost in Tokyo.
Tokyo is the most confusing city in the world. The streets have neither names nor numbers. The numbers on buildings are not sequential. You will get lost. Don't worry about it. It's part of the experience. Ask for directions frequently. Draw yourself maps.

The little buildings on corners with cops sitting in them are koban-- police boxes. They exist to help lost people. Go in and ask for help. If the cop does not speak English, say, "[place] wa doko desu ka?" Try to get him to draw you a map. He will be happy to help you out.

Or ask strangers. They may not know where you are, but if they do, they will be sympathetic. At any given time, Tokyo has thousands of lost tourists wandering about in circles.

As a last resort, if you get really hopelessly lost, you may have to go to the nearest train or subway station and take it to a stop you're familiar with.

(From the Nippon 2007 site, reprinted from Rachel Manija Brown's accounts of travels in Japan.)


Looks like "Get lost" is not considered an insult in Japan [grin]

Comments

[iceaffinity.livejournal.com]

So you're coming to Japan later this year? May I ask for what reason?

And yes, Tokyo is incredibly confusing. Looking at a map of the train and subway systems is like looking at a prettily colored knot. ^_^

[anghara.livejournal.com]

I'll be there for the World Science Fiction Convention in Yokohama - and then I'll be touring down to Kyoto for another week with a friend... But obviously I need to get lost in Tokyo first... [grin]

[iceaffinity.livejournal.com]

Yokohama is lovely. Definitely hit the Chinatown...they have great meat manju (which seem to be sold by vendors every five feet or so). And the Landmark Tower has a great view of Fuji from the western windows. If you catch it at sunset, the light reflecting off the roofs of houses looks like a path of gold into the west. Really amazing. ^_^ And Kyoto...I loved Kiyomizu-dera.

The con looks fantastic...gah, I'm probably not going to have money again that fast in August...if only it were a couple weeks later....

[joycemocha.livejournal.com]

I wish I could go to Worldcon in Japan. I've been once, loved it.

Sigh. But the day job gets in the way of Labor Day Worldcons. Double sigh.

But hey, if you're down in Portland before you go, the son can explain the way cool train map to you!

We did not really get lost in Tokyo. But we operated primarily from train station to train station, mostly in Shinjuku, which the husband knows fairly well from his business travels. We did go to Ueno, and found a wicked cool sushi shop hiding in an alleyway, along which we saw some amazing pachinko parlors. Husband and son went out and did the monorail, and we rode the train out to Kamakura, which involved taking a few small local lines.

We did get sorta lost in Hiroshima, but hey--we got saved by Taxi Santa (on Christmas Eve, no less!). A nice lift after visiting the Peace Memorial. We navigated Nagano just fine, and I'm trying to convince the husband that we want to go back and Ski Japan (now that he's decided to become a ski bum as well).

[dr-pretentious.livejournal.com]

I loved living in Japan. When I was seven, the army sent my father to a little base in Zama, so we got to have a three year adventure. All the magic in my childhood was there. One of my big dreams is to go back and climb Fuji. It's one of those things I was still too young to do when we got our orders to go back to the States.

One of our favorite places in Tokyo was the Senso-ji Temple, which you can get to from the Akasaka-Mitsuke station. If you want to get your geek on, you can go see the tech toys in Akihabara. The best day trip destination outside the city is Hakone, a national park with hot springs, a lake, and my favorite view of Fuji.

I don't know if it's still the case, but back in the 1970s, you could take your bearings in the less built-up parts of Tokyo by looking for the cluster of skyscrapers in Shinjuku, much the way New Yorkers used to take their bearings from the Twin Towers.

The day of the dead is celebrated in mid-July in some parts of the country, and in mid-August in others. If you're there in mid-August, it would be worth trying to find a place where you could see the Obon dances.

It was lovely to see you, however briefly, at Lunacon. Safe travels home.

[anghara.livejournal.com]

All too briefly, alas, but likewise, very likewise. Home now. Cats not speaking to me at all. Husbands wants to but I'm checking my email [wry grin]

Con report to follow maybe tomorrow or so, Watch this space...