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Here are some things to bear in mind which I have gathered.
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| (1) |
Japan local time is NINE hours ahead of Greenwich Mean Time (GMT + 9).
That is one hour ahead of Hong Kong/Taiwan or 9 hours ahead of London. |
| (2) |
Either acquire at least some basic Japanese, or make sure your tour guide
is proficient in the language. The vast majority of Japanese people are not
quite well-equipped with English (or Chinese) at all.
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| (3) |
Having enjoyed a gorgeous meal in a Japanese restaurant and want to call the
waiter for the bill? Don't panic, just wave and say "Sumimasen . . .
Okanjyo o kudasai!"
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| (4) |
Courtesy rules in most Japanese shops. The shopkeeper will try to explain as
hard as he can, with the help of figures, diagrams and, if you're Chinese,
even Chinese characters. He will feel embarrassed if he fails to convey his
message effectively. |
| (5) |
Get a generous amount of Japanese Yen if you wish to spend there. Credit
cards are not as popular as you might expect, especially in the smaller
and/or rural shops. Moreover, most bank teller machines won't accept foreign
credit cards. Only a very few banks, if any, have money exchange services.
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| (6) |
Use taxis only when it is urgent. Apart from being quite expensive at normal
hours, the fares are increased by 30% after 11:00pm!
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| (7) |
Be prepared to pay 5% of tax when you shop. It's something like Value-Added
Tax (VAT) in Great Britain. In most department stores if you spend more than
10,000 Yen, you may apply for an immediate refund of the tax provided that
you are a tourist with a valid passport.
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| (8) |
Most department stores and shops close as early as 7pm. Banks close at 3pm.
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| (9) |
The qualities of public toilet rolls are universally appalling, even those in
many hotels. You need some 8 layers for a safe wipe-off. They are single-ply,
thin and VERY weak especially across the length!
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| (10) |
Somewhere downtown you might come across people offering free packets of face
tissues. Not bad quality. Always accept them and save them for use in
public toilets, albeit the
advertisements on the wrappers almost invariably suggest sex services offered
by (and for) either gender.
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| (11) |
A typical summer day in Japan is very hot and with scorching sunshine. The
further south you go, the hotter. Fortunately it is not as humid as it is in
HongKong. After sunset, it begins to turn a lot cosier.
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| (12) |
Don't lay too much expectation on adequate air-conditioning in public places,
even during very hot summers. Perhaps the Japanese nation has got a knack of
keeping people sweaty indoors regardless of the season and temperature.
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| (13) |
Even Japanese hospitals are badly air-conditioned. So don't get sick!
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| (14) |
The general climatic trend is the further to the north the cooler. Hokkaido
is significantly cooler than Kyushu, let alone Okinawa. Don't worry about
cold winters. Central heating is more than adequate - typically well into the
20s on the Celsius scale (70s on the Fahrenheit). A warm windbreaker on top
of a short-sleeved T-shirt will do fine outdoors even when it plunges way
below freezing. As soon as you get indoors you will feel the urge to take off
the windbreaker as it gets too warm.
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| (15) |
If you savour milk, cheese, ice-cream, yoghurt and other dairy products, then
Japan is the heaven for you.
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| (16) |
Fruit can be prohibitively expensive. You'll be stunned by the elevated
prices of home-grown "Kyoho" grapes but equally stunned by the taste,
texture and juiciness once you've munched one.
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| (17) |
Environmental protection measures are rigorous in Japan. They have different
litter bins for different sorts of litter: plastic rubbish, paper rubbish,
metal (tinned drink) rubbish, glass rubbish, etc. for re-cycling process.
Don't mix them up.
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| (18) |
Most hot springs (onsen) are gender-segregated. It is Japanese custom
to take a good shower before bathing in a hot spring. No underwear nor even
towels are allowed in the hot springs save a handkerchief. So get prepared
and don't feel embarrassed to go all naked!
I have included a good Japanese web-page on
all the spas in Japan.
Please click here.
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Hope these might help if you plan to travel to Japan.
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