u/kemosabe6296

Before I begin, this is 100% from my experience as in the past 3 years I was lucky enough to be able to visit Tokyo 5 times or more (I lost count tbh). This is also my personal opinion, so it might be different than yours. Feel free to add or ask questions!

This post is made to help you guide yourself around Tokyo, at least from my experience.

This is only for Tokyo and its surroundings.

When is the best time to visit?

• My personal choice: Autumn. Cheap flights, cheap hotel, (slightly) less tourist. Temperature is perfect, and most of the time the sky is clear, so it will be the best time to see Fuji-san!
• When I'd avoid: Summer. I am from Indonesia so it is summer all year round for me. I don't like heat, plus summer is holiday season so hotels and airfare (at least) will be more expensive and crowded. On the bright side, there are lot of festivals and it is said to be the most festive season!
• Honorable mention: Spring, since it is cherry blossom season. The city is absolutely pretty when Sakuras are at full bloom!

Where to land?

There are two international airports that serves Tokyo:

• Haneda: This is where I prefer to land. It is only 30-45 mins to Tokyo by train/monorail, and there is direct train service (Keikyu Line) which is very convenient. If you take the monorail, you need to change at Hamamatsucho Station in which you can conveniently transfer to Yamanote Line or Keihin Tohoku Line. It costed me around 700 JPY per person to get to the airport from Marunouchi.
• Narita: I don't really like this airport since it is very far from Tokyo. And afaik Narita is the main hub for long haul international flights, so the immigration queue, in my case, is always way longer than Haneda. It took me ~2 hours and 2000 JPY per person by bus to get to Marunouchi, and the Narita Express is slightly faster at a cost.

Where to stay?

• My personal choice: Shimbashi. Walking distance to Ginza, and the station serves a lot of lines. When I stayed in Shimbashi I rarely have to transfer between lines! At evening there are lot of izakayas and bars as well.
• Honorable mention:
  • Near Okachimachi Station. Walking distance to both Akihabara and Ueno (also Ameyoko Shopping Street). Served by Yamanote Line as well so it is easy to get around too.
  • Asakusa. It might be a bit far from city center, and in another side of Shibuya, but everytime I look for a hotel, Asakusa is always cheaper. It is also very quiet in the evening, and my fav thing to do if I stay in Asakusa is to enjoy konbini snacks alongside Sumida River before heading back to the hotel.
  • Ikebukuro. I've stayed in Ikebukuro once and I quite like it. My hotel near the legendary Tokyo Arakawa Line so using the last surviving tram line to get to the hotel is exciting! Plus it is near tourist spot like Shinjuku and Shibuya, and the hotels usually slightly cheaper than Shinjuku or Shibuya.

On a side note:

• I tend to avoid staying near Shibuya or Shinjuku. This is just my personal preferences, since those are "too crowded" for my liking.
• When I'm looking for an accomodation, I tend to look what line that served by the station nearby and it is a big bonus if I can go to/from the airport easily.

How to get around?

There are some ways to get around Tokyo:

• Taxi: very expensive. I've always avoid to take taxi, sometimes I walk instead.
• Expressway Bus: this is the bus that serves Tokyo and its surrounding cities. Usually it has flat fare around 2000 JPY (may vary), and you need to buy ticket to board. I usually take this bus to Narita or Gotemba (both I visit frequently) since it is simpler and I can be more relaxed, no need to transfer or anything. Bonus is that if I take this bus to/from Narita, I don't have to carry my suitcases as it will be stored in the boot under the bus by the staff.
• City Bus: this is the bus that serves inside the city. It has flat fare of 210 JPY (in Tokyo) and you don't have to buy ticket before. You can buy it from the driver (they only accept cash) when you board the bus or using IC Card (Suica or Pasmo).
  • Tips: if you are paying with cash, prepare the money before boarding the bus will make everything quicker. Plus point if you pay it with exact amount. Using IC Card is way quicker and simpler.
• Train: The OP. I observed that in city center Tokyo there is a station every ~1km. The train are very punctual and quick. The stations also located conveniently, it is always walking distance of local attractions or shopping areas. Cheap, has a huge network, quick, punctual. The downside is maybe it is a bit crowded so sitting is not guaranteed. Once I had to stand from Marunouchi to Yokohama because the train is crowded! There are three kind of trains that serves Tokyo:
  • Local: This is the train that serves all the stations along the line.
  • Rapid/Express: This is train skips smaller stations. Very useful if you are going to Tokyo's surrounding. When I went to Yokohama, the Rapid Tokaido Line only stops at 4 stations from Marunouchi.
  • Limited Express: This is like Rapid train, but usually you need to buy both "Basic Fare" and "Supplement". Some Limited Express trains are free, though. Basically basic fare is the price of normal train ticket, and supplement is the extras that you have to pay since you are going to use this specific train. Example for this kind of train is the Odakyu Romancecar in which you need to buy both basic fare and its supplements.

On a side note:

• Using IC Card supposedly 10 JPY cheaper. It is also simpler since you just have to tap.
  • There is an IC Card machine at Haneda Airport that sells Suica card that can be printed with your name on it. It makes it a good, functional souvenir from your journey! This Suica will expire 10 years after its last activity. I have been using mine for years.
  • Topping up IC Card can only be done on the recharge machine, it only accept cash. You can have Suica on your Apple Wallet. Making it even more simpler since you don't have to top up.
    • No need to worry if you have insufficient balance when you're tapping out. All stations have fare adjustment machines that you can use to top up your card. Just remember to bring cash with you!
  • IC Card can be used for various public transports, as well as a payment method on selected shops.
  • There is also a day pass (1000 JPY for 24h, 1500JPY for 48h, and 2000JPY for 72h) for Tokyo Subway. This ticket covers all subway lines in Tokyo (Tokyo Metro and Toei lines). If you are going to use subway that often, this might be the cheapest. Honestly, I've never buy this since I've never use Tokyo subway over 1000 JPY per day.
• You have to look at the monitor on the platform and on the side of the train to know if that is a Local or Rapid train. Usually, Limited Express train that requires you to buy supplements are located separately from the local train (different platform or even building), so you won't be accidentally board one without paying.
• There is one train line that I always avoid: Ginza Line. It always crowded and somehow it has a lot of loud tourists. And the terminus at Asakusa has two different separated platforms that serves the same line so you have to look which platform that will depart first.
• If you are using bus, you have to look which door is the entrance. In Tokyo and its surroundings at least, you board the bus using the front door, and exit using the rear (middle) door. The driver wouldn't let you to board from the rear door or exit from the front door. Although I've seen some people done that without any warnings from the driver, but it'll be the best if you just follow the rules.

So, that concludes it! I am very open to questions or if you have something to add, feel free to comment below!

Hope you guys enjoy your time in Tokyo!

Was riding the Yokosuka Line on the other day and noticed that the train set has 4+7 cars formation. It has 4 ends: car 1, car 4, car 5, and car 11.

So it is not possible to go from car 4 to car 5 from inside the car. I ride JO quite often while I was there, and I noticed this formation on every JO train.

I noticed that my Japanese sensei talks to his colleague using each other's name. E.g. instead of "have you had dinner?" he said "have Yamato-san had dinner?"

I thought it was cultural thing, then I watched some Japanese movies and animes, there were scenes when the MC called their friend by the word "You" and the other character were unhappy with that.

I believe this is the newest station on the Yamanote Line, and the architecture is very different as well since it is new.

It's also the only station on the Yamanote Line that use english word on it (cmiiw)

And from articles I've read, JR East invited people to vote for the station's name. The highest vote was "Takanawa Station" with 8k+ votes, but somehow they picked "Takanawa Gateway" while it only had 36 votes?

Is there any stories behind this station?

https://preview.redd.it/aji9e7j7ynzg1.png?width=700&format=png&auto=webp&s=5058a8bb2c439c5b1876c0a477355860da5cf81e

Kayaknya produk lokal ya, dan dia jadi sponsornya ISSOM. Kalo liat reviewnya sih bagus. Harga sedikit lebih diatas merk2 OE yang pnp replacement. Udah dapet rotor yang slotted, jd bikin looks lebih oke juga haha. Ga ngincer yang drilled sih soalnya takut retak.

Kalo dari bentuknya sih kayaknya one-pieced construction ya, jadi mungkin secara bobot masih sama2 aja kaya disc brake biasa, cuman emang looksnya kayaknya lebih dapet karena slotted surface.

Ada yang pernah pake? Recommended kah?

1. How common is it in Japan for a high schooler to live alone?
2. Until when you stopped bathing with your parents? (I watched an anime where the MC, a teenage boy, bathe with his dad)
3. (This is based on your experience) Do/did you get allowance when you're in high school, or do you have to work for your own money? In animes I've watched, the MC hangs out a lot which cost a lot for a high schooler, I guess.
4. Is that true that in Japanese high schools, there are a lot of festivals? (sports fest, culture fest, etc)

Thank you for your time and have a good day!

Contoh, gua punya temen kita panggil "adek/adik"

Kita lagi mabar (online) tiba2 mak nya manggil ala2 ibu2 soft spoken gitu "aaadeeeekk"

Kita ngakak, terus kita jd panggil dia adek. Ini kejadian pas kuliah, dari yang manggil kita2 aja sampe akhirnya sekelas manggil dia adek. Dia awalnya kesel, terus sampe udah pasrah wkwkwk

Sekarang kita umurnya udah 30th tp gua tetep manggil dia adek wkwkwk

My wife loves a peaceful quiet area, so everytime we're in Japan, we spent like 1 day just to visit a random small town that we could reach.

We went to Senzu this year, and last year we went to Ninomiya. When we were there, I believe there are no foreigners. Senzu has some local tourist though, as this is the terminus of Oigawa Railway. While Ninomiya was very quiet.

We met some local seniors while walking around and most of them greeted us with smile. In Ninomiya, some even asked us where do we come from.

We're just wondering what do people who lives in a small town thinks when they see a foreigner wandering through their town?

Mau rant dikit aja gua tiap pagi lewat tol yang dimana tol nya itu ada section yang ga ada bahu jalannya pas masuk jembatan, selebihnya normal.

Tiap pagi banyak monyet yang nyetir lewat bahu jalan, malah bikin bottle neck anyinggg

Sekarang ada petugas di beberapa titik buat nyingkirin orang2 biar ga masuk bahu jalan, bottle neck nya malah jadi banyak jir, di tiap ada petugas jaga malah jadi bottle neck

Lucunya pas di section yang gak ada bahu jalan, malah lancar

Artinya lu ga usah lewat bahu jalan dong monyet malah bikin bottle neck jd macet

Berapa kali juga macet gara ada kendaraan mogok, padahal mogoknya udah bener di bahu jalan, tp banyak monyet yang lewat bahu jalan masuk ke jalur kiri jd bottle neck lagi asu

Dasar manusia2 otaknya seperempat sendok Nyam2

https://preview.redd.it/gexqb6nwsuxg1.jpg?width=900&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=8f269aa5bcf896437f2585208100c88ca10ab179

My knee was hurt as hell (to the point that I can't use stairs without pain) and a staff at a random drug store in Sugamo recommend me this. When I bought this, the cashier asked me if I know how to use this, and proceed to explained it anyway (it is the same as regular patch if you are wondering)

I've tried some different patches before and only this one that really works. My knee wasn't hurt anymore. I was going to buy some more of this but I couldn't find it anywhere else in Tokyo. I used Google Translate to read the details on the back and it has some warnings although the whole translation was doesn't really make sense. I remember one of the warning is "...consult doctor"

And it got me thinking, since it is the only one that works, the cashier even made me sure about this patch, can't be found anywhere (except that one random drug store in Sugamo), and has some warnings with "consult doctor" translation on the back, is this somehow a prescription drug?

Thank you and have a good day!

I noticed that some lines has extension service as a different line in Tokyo. E.g. Toei Asakusa Line has an extension as Keikyu Line.

As far as I know, those are two different operators, which also means those are different companies (Toei & Keikyu), so how does this thing works?

I believe both Toei and Keikyu has their own set of trains and both sets are used to serve this line. So, at least, I know that both do the maintenance of their own trains. But how about the profit? Do they sharing the profits? I just don't understand how this works if someone is board the train at one of Asakusa Line's station and got off at one of Keikyu Line's station.

Does both Toei & Keikyu has an agreement? or those two are assigned by the government to work together?

I'm sorry if there are lot of questions, as I am genuinely curious.

Thank you and have a good day!