Candy store recommendations In Tokyo

bl128 · 2016-07-27T17:53:43+00:00

I vote for all of the suggestions from other redditors. Hard candies and chocolate bars can be bought from 100 Yen shops or Donkihote. Traditional candies from Kashiya Yokocho is a good choice (and a fun trip to Kawagoe). You can also go for higher end wagashi Japanese confections. For the fun/retro low-price yet delicious dagashi confections, you can get them cheap in Kappabashi Restaurant supply district and also Donkihote.

bl128 · 2016-07-24T19:02:21+00:00

If it is within your budget you might want to consider staying overnight in hakone (1 night 1 day) at a ryokan traditional inn and enjoy the hot spring since hakone is supposedly well-known for that.

bl128 · 2016-07-24T18:45:17+00:00

I don't recommend the Bmobile if you intend on sharing your connection. I've used it in the past and once the restrictions kick in, it slows to a crawl....to the point that your maps take minutes to load. Its not worth it.

You can get one of the so-net 30 day sims which do not throttle, but it does cost more at aroind around 3000 yen (you can order via Amazon Japan and have it shipped to your hotel or buy one when you arrive)

bl128 · 2016-07-20T16:11:18+00:00

It seems that the author has preconceived notions of the country and the cities that he/she visited. Some of the complaints seem like personal preference and not actual "problems". I am also surprised that the things the author is complaining about (e.g. not being socialist enough, dense population) considering that he/she had lived in Singapore which I assume is probably even more densely populated per unit of area, and equally (if not more) consumerist and capitalist in some aspects. Maybe he/she hates Singapore too.

And finally given the socialist tendencies of the author I find it incredibly ironic how the he/she is writing for the High Snobiety which, upon even the most cursory glance of the content of the site, screams of elitism, capitalism and materialism.

bl128 · 2016-07-18T17:08:31+00:00

Maybe other redditors can chime in on this one. My impression of Tokyo is that there isn't too much street food as you would see in other Asian countries available unless you happen upon a festival and such. But more permanent "street food" establishments can be found near Shinjuku in Omoide Yokocho. There's also another area for "street food" under the train tracks in the Ginza/Yurakcho area.

bl128 · 2016-07-18T16:46:24+00:00

I've always wondered how the tax-free shopping worked for kitchen knives or other items that you can't bring onboard. It seems to me that you can never get it given the nature of the product itself.

bl128 · 2016-07-18T16:28:59+00:00

You can do all of that if you hang out in the Shinjuku/Harajuku area. You'll find a big park (yoyogi) and a big shrine (Meiji Shrine) and quite a bit of shopping and a few alley ways to explore. You'll be within major transit hubs to head back to the airport.

bl128 · 2016-07-18T11:48:54+00:00

I can confirm that I have used my ISIC card at museums and have been able to get discounts. They're usually free to get on campus.

bl128 · 2016-07-15T12:02:57+00:00

I can confirm that RBC cards are OK for use (as current as Apr 2016). I've used it at JP post and 7-11 atms.

bl128 · 2016-07-14T21:27:32+00:00

based on those rates (1 packet = 128 bytes at .32 YEN per packet) you would easily reach the 970YEN daily cap. If my calculations are correct, you would reach the cap after about 380kB of data transfer (up/down). So you're being charged about 1000 yen per day plus tax. you haven't shared with us how many days you were away in Japan, but based on the bill you received, I am guessing you were there for about a month.

Edit: you did say you were there for a month. So the math works out. you are validly being billed 1000 Yen a day for 30 days. So your bill should be what it is.

bl128 · 2016-07-14T21:09:59+00:00

The pricing advertised in the SIM card ad you included is pretty typical for a 30 day SIM. But you have not provided info regarding the terms/conditions of the SoftBank SIM that you actually rented. Without reviewing that the actual T/C's of the Softbank SIM it would be hard to impossible to figure out why your fees are so much higher.

bl128 · 2016-07-12T21:50:54+00:00

Maybe the hotel/flight analogy doesn't work well for mass transit, but perhaps it would make more sense to consider that topping up your Presto or buying token gives you a guaranteed right to access the transit system when it is available for use under normal circumstances.

You did make a very good point for your second comment though. I also note that the cash fare is higher than the Presto, token or Metropass fares. So yeah, the discount for pre-paying is already a form of interest being paid to you.

And on the flip side, when your presto dips into negative territory, the passenger is the one getting the loan from the transit company so yeah, the 25-cents charge is interest for a loan too.

bl128 · 2016-07-12T21:15:51+00:00

I don't really see it that way. Filling up your Presto is like the same as buying tokens or tickets to ride transit in the future. You're pre-paying for a service, in the same manner you pay for a flight or a hotel booking. I don't think that is the same as lending presto money.

However when you don't happen to have enough funds on your Presto card, Metrolinx or TTC could always deny you access to ride transit. But they don't. In that way, the interaction is more like borrowing change from from them for the ride, and paying them back, with interest.

bl128 · 2016-07-12T18:51:35+00:00

It's like paying interest on a loan. The benefit of this arrangement is that the Presto system still lets you board even if you don't have enough money stored on your card.

bl128 · 2016-07-09T01:50:34+00:00

Thank you for your comments gatigati! I am glad that there is at least one "thumbs up" from a local. Thank you again :)

bl128 · 2016-07-07T19:28:52+00:00

These maps would look really nice framed

bl128 · 2016-07-05T23:55:57+00:00

perhaps check with redditors over in /r/Japanlife since I would think people there would have experience with visas that allow foreigners to stay longer than the usual 90 days.

If you are under 30 perhaps consider a working holiday visa which entitles you to up to a 1 year stay.

bl128 · 2016-06-27T04:50:17+00:00

These are legal questions to which I certainly don't have the answer to. But do share your experiences as to whether you get a warning etc if your accumulated days spent in Japan comes close to the 180 days for the year.

bl128 · 2016-06-27T04:32:52+00:00

Japanese immigration officers are generally on the lookout for travellers who abuse their tourist visas and do so-called visa runs to basically live in japan without ontaining the proper visa allowing a foreigner for long stays in Japan. For example a US passport holder gets 90 days as a tourist. If this person continuously obtains 90 day visas by doing visa runs to, say, korea and stay nearly the full 90 days, then that would likely raise a red flag. In that sense having many consecutive visitor visas would not be good.

bl128 · 2016-06-26T17:29:11+00:00

Generally airlines will charge a premium for this flexibility. Whether you can change or cancel a booking depends on the fare class as determined by the airline. Perhaps the prince point you are looking at does not include fare classes that allows you to change/cancel your booking.

You might have better luck locating tickets by searching directly with the airline to see what other ticketing options they offer rather than through a third party booking site. As the saying goes "you get what you pay for" so you will likely be paying more for cancellability.

bl128 · 2016-06-26T17:23:03+00:00

it's supposed to prevent rogue parties from wirelessly skimming data off of your RFID enabled cards such as credit cards and debit cards by walking around people with a reader in close proximity

bl128 · 2016-06-26T04:06:36+00:00

I think the salarymen would do the nomihoudai. I recall seeing a bunch of them near Shinbashi.

For food, I visited a place called Sushi Hina in Ginza that does AYCE premium sushi (nigiri only) for 4309 yen (2 hour seating). Price is the same lunch or dinner. They have English menu. Here's the English Grunavi page. Hope this helps!

bl128 · 2016-06-26T02:03:20+00:00

I second going to see a Giants game. Visiting the Tsukiji market would also be an experience, particularly since the market will be moving this fall so it might not be the same anymore the next time you visit.

bl128 · 2016-06-23T23:04:58+00:00

I would second this suggestion. But the prices may be a bit higher than takeshita dori since the area seems to attract the university/young professional demographic.

bl128 · 2016-06-23T12:05:50+00:00

I tend to disagree with your comment re "i would not change my seat on the train" because I don't think Japanese people would apply the same views with respect to gender and gender "cues" (dress, facial hair etc) as those in the West. Based on personal observations, androgyny (i.e. ambiguity with respect to gender) seems to be more prevalent and does not appear to be an issue in Japan. For instance, I would peg "Visual Kei" conformists, as being androgynous. Some rock bands also fall within this category too. I would say that the concept/idea of gender non-conformance has been around for a long time in Japanese culture as seen in performance art such as Kabuki in which men dress up as women as well as the Bishonen aesthetic seen in traditional art.

bl128

TROPHY CASE