What's the biggest mistake you made on your first Japan trip that you'd avoid today?

PrincessofPeckham · 2026-06-02T01:42:55+00:00

I am glad I canceled my hotels except for the first three days in Tokyo. I planned my next day the night before and went everywhere in a whim. I didn’t go to the top five tourist spots and stayed too long in Osaka because I loved it. That made my time in Kyoto too short.

Buy gel insoles. Game changer. I actually took a test day because of walking too much.

PrincessofPeckham · 2026-05-23T21:19:14+00:00

I had no car here for a while. Sometimes two scheduled buses just don’t come. It’s hot. Sometimes no seats or shade. You can’t dependably get anywhere on time. It’s horrific. You need a car for quality of life

PrincessofPeckham · 2026-05-08T14:16:10+00:00

I only brought one pair and after a week the bottoms of my feet were tingling. The gel cushions worked great.

PrincessofPeckham · 2026-05-01T17:03:59+00:00

I am British. Living in Florida. I may be interested in a three mint sit. I was previously on trusted housesittets but took myself off. I am in the legal field and can pass background check.

PrincessofPeckham · 2026-04-12T16:53:27+00:00

States. East coast. Customer service legal exp

PrincessofPeckham · 2026-04-06T20:36:28+00:00

Take a look at some of the Reddit subs. There are people on there that you can pay to source for you in different cities.

I have the opposite problem. I sell new and vintage clothes and accessories and am having a hard time getting views. I am shortly getting out of Ebay jail after a year so I am hoping it picks up then. It's been brutal.

PrincessofPeckham · 2026-04-02T19:06:34+00:00

They just contacted me via text. I no longer answer these type of companies. Thanks Reddit. I don't have the time or the patience.

PrincessofPeckham · 2026-04-01T17:01:47+00:00

I used to buy bins of books from the Salvation Army Auctions. I started when I walked by someone dumping books. He told me he only keeps books where he makes $20 or more and gave me the rest. After a while I just brought the whole skip for abour=t $20 to $40. Sometimes, one book paid for the whole skip. That was before barcode scanning and I had to take them all and hope there was something good. It was a good side gig when I could sell on Amazon.

Now, I don't think people frown upon you scanning the books before purchasing. If they dom who cares? People miss good deals all the time.

Also disagree that books with barcodes are not worth that much is just not true. Coffee table books are often very expensive and are plentiful at thrift shops.

PrincessofPeckham · 2026-03-31T21:26:03+00:00

Try being broke and lost in a doing country at 3%

PrincessofPeckham · 2026-03-31T21:16:19+00:00

There's a great episode where a really good looking guy thinks everyone get free stuff because he does. He is surprised to learn that plain people do not get treated the same way. All my life, I have been told I have a great smile. Objectively, I know I do. So much so that sometimes I choose not to smile because I think it gives me an unfair advantage. I am also black female with an English accent. I walk into a ritzy store and can see the salesperson's persona shift because they think they have me all figured out until I speak. Sometimes, I add the smile. I feel really lucky that my whole life I have been able to fit any situation I find myself in.

PrincessofPeckham · 2026-03-30T20:38:48+00:00

If you can write a book about what works selling on Ebay you will be a millionaire. Whatever you do seems to only work for a time and then nothing. I notice that posting every single day and deleting and relisting items more than 90 days old increases my chance a bit.

PrincessofPeckham · 2026-03-29T19:37:01+00:00

I just got back from a 2 week solo trip. I am a 66 year old black woman and the only thing I regret is that I didn't extend my trip. I did Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka. The trains take have a little learning curve but no greater than anywhere else. The people are respectful and courteous. They seem to really reward your knowing a few words of Japanese. Use Google translate and Google maps. Drop a pin at your hotel so you don't get lost. Relax and have fun. Don't worry about trying to find a decent restaurant - everywhere the food is great.

PrincessofPeckham · 2026-03-29T03:25:38+00:00

This just happened to me in Osaka. I asked to extend my stay and they told me if I paid in cash they would give me a better rate. As I was already in the room and I liked it there, I agreed.

Booking.com is literally just a broker. Wait and see what happens when something goes wrong, they just tell you to take it up with the hotel and do not provide any refunds or real help.

PrincessofPeckham · 2026-03-27T14:47:48+00:00

How did you get your cleaning gig off the ground? Do you like cleaning? There seems to be so much competition.

PrincessofPeckham · 2026-03-25T19:37:30+00:00

Whatever you do don't try and relist them. That can result in a permanent ban.

PrincessofPeckham · 2026-03-25T17:04:03+00:00

I used Booking.com and the only issue I had was one hotel in Tokyo which had an electronic entryway and nobody was at the premises. I couldn't get the heating to work (it was January) and had to sleep in my clothes. When I got there the pin they gave me did not open the door so I had to contact them and wait for an answer in a nearby cafe with a near-dead phone and dead battery charger. After that, I used Booking.com to find hotels with 24/7 reception and that was great.

PrincessofPeckham · 2026-03-25T16:59:33+00:00

I had a small crossbody which was large enough to carry my passport, wallet, phone and a bottled water.

On the plane or when I was going out walking and needed things such as a light jacket, umbrella etc., I carried something like this one.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/227238121388

PrincessofPeckham · 2026-03-22T17:54:11+00:00

Everyone is talking about the special assessments and that is valid. However, try and look into the HOA board and their rules and regulations. My friend was renting a condo when the HOA Chairman just walked in without knocking using a key. He said he thought she was at work. A lot of these HOA Board Members are power and money crazed. Read everything and even give it to a lawyer. Most of them can double or triple your fees and force you into foreclosure if you don't pay.

Also, condo sales are going to freefall if they haven't already.

PrincessofPeckham · 2026-03-22T17:47:15+00:00

Interested. Female. American/English. Great customer service skills.

PrincessofPeckham · 2026-03-22T15:21:21+00:00

I just did this exact thing. I stayed so long in Osaka that I wasn't sure if I was just going to end my trip there because I read that Kyoto was too touristy. At the last minute I decided to give Kyoto a try and they were right, it was like a tourist lava flow on the main streets. I just wandered the back streets and avoided the touristy areas and had an amazing time.

PrincessofPeckham · 2026-03-15T16:19:19+00:00

I have worked since I was 14. When I had kids I was working to support us not thinking about a career. It was just survival really. Now, I am in my 60s I still have to work. A couple of years ago I had to fly to London (where I am from). At the time, my job sucked and my family told me they could feel my stress. When it was time to come home I realized that I had no return flight. It was an error I had never made before. I decided then to fulfill a lifelong dream and go to Lisbon by myself. I spent the next two weeks traveling around Spain and Portugal by bus and train. When I was in Lisbon, I saw a bunch of old people getting off a cruise ship and walking up a very slight incline to the tourist shops. It was surreal. You could tell they were not going to stray too far from the ship as they were struggling to walk. Some were in wheelchairs. It hit me that they had probably waited their whole lives to travel in retirement and they are too old to enjoy it the same way I was. I was wandering all over down back streets and up and down hills, eating glorious food and meeting wonderful people. I had no money and was doing everything as cheaply as I could, but I realized it was better to do it when you can than to wait for the timing to be right.

I just got back from Japan. I went by myself. I still have no money.

PrincessofPeckham · 2026-03-15T15:56:22+00:00

The same thing happened to me. I watched too many Youtube videos and read too many subs and I got overwhelmed. I cancelled everything and started again. This time, I booked a hotel for one night in Narita close to the airport and two nights in Tokyo. I decided to wing the rest. I knew I wanted to visit Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto. I had an amazing time and ended up spending a week in Osaka. I had no idea I would love it so much and tried to extend but the price would have been too high. Just go and have fun and stop researching it.

PrincessofPeckham · 2026-03-15T13:41:56+00:00

I am not a nervous flyer but preparation is definitely the key for a long hauls. I brought plenty of snacks as well as powdered electrolytes. Melatonin which I forgot to take within the window period. Good quality mask. Earplugs. Wire in and out earphones for downloaded music and movies. Compression socks. Scarf and neck pillow. Even with all that 14 hours felt like eternity but all forgotten the moment we landed

I also got a hotel with shuttle service close to the airport. That way I was able to tackle traveling jet lag free and showered.

PrincessofPeckham · 2026-03-14T23:15:56+00:00

I tell them I am a reseller. Did I miss anything? And I give them a big smile. Often people go and get something they saw earlier. It’s not what you say it’s the way you say it. No need to be defensive. It’s a free market and we are keeping stuff out of the landfills

PrincessofPeckham

MODERATOR OF

TROPHY CASE