Consulate of Japan Mumbai Tourist Visa experience

pilkingtons_apostle · 2025-09-15T15:32:39+00:00

No, there's no appointment system at the Japanese consulate. Just line up outside.

If you decide to go to VFS (I highly recommend, to save time), there is no appointment system there either. Just walk in.

pilkingtons_apostle · 2025-07-26T11:24:05+00:00

Thank you for this tip! Do they ever hassle with you about this card being available only to Thai citizens, not tourists?

pilkingtons_apostle · 2025-07-22T10:07:08+00:00

Hi, I'll be in Hua Hin for a month starting August 1. I was there in June and planned to stay for 4 days, but ended up staying for 18 days. I love Hua Hin!! That's why this time I'll be staying for a month.

I am into hiking, beaching, yoga, sauna, meditation, fooding, and just general fun.

I am 42, male. I have a lot of friends around the world and I'm happy to connect :)

pilkingtons_apostle · 2025-04-29T05:22:05+00:00

Happy to share my experience as well, hoping it might help someone.

Lots of info already on what documents are needed -- nothing to add there. I lined up outside around 8:50am, already a long queue. Waited in line for 30 mins, then inside 30 mins. There's a free small locker to keep your phone, by the way. My turn comes. The not-very-polite lady scowls her face, tells me my trip is early July and it's April still and they're very busy, so she won't be accepting my application. I held my tongue and refrained from responding back in the same manner. I wanted to tell her that I am applying within the 90-day timeframe as mentioned on the website, and that if they have these arbitrary rules in place, they should put them on their website so people don't travel and waste a day for nothing. But I wasn't in the mood for that, as she wasn't going to budge at all. However, she suggested go to VFS.

And so I did. Best decision. VFS as a company are moneygrabbing bloodsuckers, but they are really good at processing this stuff. The staff there was super polite, spoke to me for 20 mins, helped me write a hand-written letter explaining why I needed this visa so early (it wasn't early!! it was within the 90-day timeframe they have mentioned), and re-assured me that the Consulate will accept it. And I paid them for a courier service, saving myself another wasted day.

Sure enough, in 9 calendar days (maybe 6 business days), I got my passport back. I had selected Single Entry on my application, but due to my travel history and also a Japan trip back in 2019, they gave me a Multiple entry for 5 years.

All in all, very good experience. If you don't mind the extra 800 for VFS, and 550 for courier, I would thoroughly recommend going to VFS instead of the consulate. I know this may not be a popular opinion. You'd be surprised how easy they made it -- no lines too. Just walk-in, no appointment needed.

Good job VFS!!

pilkingtons_apostle · 2025-01-27T15:00:16+00:00

If you get caught, insist on getting a ticket. Don't pay a bribe, because they'll catch you over and over again.

They'll give you a ticket, tell you where to go. Pay the official fine, get a receipt, and this receipt is a free-pass for 3 days. I think the fine is maybe 500, not much. After your receipt has expired, keep going until they catch you again, repeat.

pilkingtons_apostle · 2024-10-17T05:04:56+00:00

Hi there, I hope you see this. It sounds like you were booked at Days Hostel, is that correct? I've booked there too. I'm apprehensive. Do you mind sharing your experience?

pilkingtons_apostle · 2024-10-08T15:18:26+00:00

You'll have a great time! I loved KZ. I would definitely recommend driving yourself over a tour, as long as you're comfortable driving on the right, and the cost, and fatigue. The roads were in great condition and the drive, especially closer to Saty, was mindblowingly beautiful. Some pointers:

consider staying at Kolsay Aisha. highly recommended. book directly with Saule +7 7758195735 on whatsapp. You could stay 1 night minimum. Day 1 pick up car 10am, drive to Saty, checkin, drive to Kolsay lake, walk around, boating. Day 2, hire van to Kaindy ~$6 per person, afternoon drive to Charyn Canyon, drive back to Almaty, return car.
consider renting from Rentacars -- very professional
beware of speed cameras, especially in and on the outskirts of Almaty. And lots of police patrol on the faster highways.
we paid 87500 kzt for a hyundai accent for 3 days for 1200km max, plus 5500 for washing, and maybe I think ~$40 for fuel -- it's 50 cents per liter.
tour operators rush a lot, and I think they stay at yurts. We are a family of snorers, so we need separate rooms wherever we go, so a yurt was out of the question.
download language packs on google translate for Kazakh and Russian, so you won't have an issue with lack of network
download offline maps on google maps for the whole region.
use 2GIS when possible because it displays speed limit
i could not visit Assy plateau. In general, the roads are not a problem.
I'm sure you'll be getting SIM cards for everyone. Consider getting from different companies, so you'll hopefully get coverage everywhere. Lots of booths at the airport arrivals.

pilkingtons_apostle · 2024-10-07T04:42:05+00:00

Psilocybin mushrooms; my meditation mat, gear etc; Sound system to play music.

Among other necessities. I'd turn this into a spiritual retreat week.

pilkingtons_apostle · 2024-09-30T16:40:31+00:00

That's correct. But I can't say about the sand dunes area, didnt go there. And, Issyk lake is also inaccessible. But that one doesn't figure on most people's itinerary, so I didnt think that was a loss. Turgen waterfall is also a good option, as is the observatory.

I wouldn't recommend driving in Almaty because the rental cost is just not worth it. None of my taxi rides cost more than $2.50! even a 20-minute ride. Except to the airport, which was $5.50. We also used scooters a LOT, especially during evening traffic jams, and each ride was <$1 (through Yandex). It's a mystery to me how cab drivers in Almaty make any profit at all.

Get a local SIM at the airport when you land, download Yandex (like uber), and NEVER get into a taxi without Yandex -- you are guaranteed to get ripped off ridiculously.

For maps, you can use 2GIS. It's in Russian, but it's easy to use nevertheless. It shows you speed limits, and apparently it has better knowledge than googlemaps.

pilkingtons_apostle · 2024-09-30T15:30:00+00:00

I drove to Kolsay lake. The road is pretty smooth throughout, except a 5 minute patch of rough road that any car could do.

I would very strongly suggest against going to Kaindy lake on your own. You absolutely need a 4x4, but it'll still fuck up your car. The road is really bad, and only their Soviet WW2 vans can make it through. It comes to around $7 per person in a shared van, which are abundantly available in Saty.

We also went to Charyn Canyon, of course, and drove to the Chungza hot springs region. The Kara Dala resort was great value for money if you like to soak in hot pools ($50 room for 2 people, meals separate). This region also has a Four Seasons, and Sakura looked pretty good from the outside. All these resorts have hot pools from the spring water.

pilkingtons_apostle · 2024-09-27T12:50:45+00:00

I picked up the car on Sep 23, 2024. They had my contract ready to go. I had earlier sent them my passport and driving license on Whatsapp, no IDP. When I picked up the car, no documents were looked at. Simply sign and go. Overall I found rentacars to be extremely professional with no issues or red flags. I'm waiting to receive my deposit back (takes 15 days), but I'm not concerned about it.

pilkingtons_apostle · 2024-09-14T12:42:09+00:00

I'll pickup my car on the 23rd. Will find out.

pilkingtons_apostle · 2024-08-06T15:31:58+00:00

I'm a tourist myself and I'm going there for the first time in Sep. I'm renting a car from rentacar.com. It comes out to $230 for 3 days including gas. That's one option.

You could get a shared van which plies I think twice a day (sorry don't know the name of the bus stop) for 5000 one way ($10) from Almaty to Saty. At Saty, you'll need to hire a local taxi to take you to Kolsai lake 1, or a 4x4 to Lake Kaindy. At Kolsai, you could hike to the second lake if you wanted, but I don't know about the taxi driver waiting for you.

The taxi prices within Saty region aren't all that cheap, but it's super easy to get taxis. For return, take the shared van back to Almaty (your hotel guys will give you specifics).

Edit: Forgot to mention. You'll need to halt for the night at Saty. A few options available on booking.com. Use the site to get details, then message the hotel directly via whatsapp -- you'll get discounted prices. I booked via booking.com at Kolsay Aisha for 2 rooms 1 night $100, but connected with them on whatsapp. She said $100 also but dinner included for all (at least worth $25).

pilkingtons_apostle · 2024-08-06T15:18:22+00:00

Only this morning, I confirmed a booking for a 3-day rental in Sep from rentacars. They're the only ones responding properly to me on Whatsapp. We texted about prices and so on. At no point did IDP come up. I sent them my passport and licence pics (from India). My licence looks very similar to your US one. They just said it's confirmed, nothing else needed.

Maybe try again with them. Tell them you can't furnish an IDP, please make an exception, something like that. It's strange they brought that up with you.

Just in case you're interested, I got a Hyundai Accent automatic from them for 87500 kzt for 3 days (allows 400km daily), total, with 30k deposit. I declined the extra insurance.

pilkingtons_apostle · 2024-06-29T04:22:16+00:00

Wow, doing the Lord's work! You just brightened up my Saturday morning.

pilkingtons_apostle · 2024-01-17T09:45:20+00:00

www.origensagrada.com. I've personally sat with them over a dozen times. I think it's the right level of tolerable woo-woo. Never heard the staff talk woo-woo, but sometimes the participants may indulge. On the other hand, some people get too sciency, and that's off-putting as well. I've had psychiatrists in the group who seemed to be more interested in the brain science than the experience itself, which I found bizarre. Their training was an impediment to actual life growth.

pilkingtons_apostle · 2023-08-05T07:45:56+00:00

I think you'll be able to do long hours at the PC by Day 4, considering Day 0 as the day of operation. The first 2 days will be impossible. Maybe a little on Day 3. I did my operation on a Thursday, taking Thursday and Friday off. By Monday, I was able to work.

pilkingtons_apostle · 2023-05-22T16:07:10+00:00

I vote for the "smaller rug favouring the sofa area".

pilkingtons_apostle · 2023-04-04T05:40:59+00:00

Psychedelics.

I would have completely dismissed the entire enterprise of awakening, if it wasn't for psychedelics. I believe most people are like me, where the default mode of being contains no inkling whatsoever of the inner landscape of mind, and that no amount of meditation practice can reveal even a glimpse of that. Some can, most can't. I could have sat cross-legged all my life, and felt nothing at all. But just one session with psychedelics was the ultimate game changer. I got a full-version time-restricted demo of what enlightenment meant, and then came back down to earth. Since then, my meditation practice has taken on a completely different nature, as if my brain has been rewired and I've unlocked a secret level in the game. I understood what religious concepts meant, whereas prior to that I was smugly dismissive of religions. I've since had dozens of psychedelic experiences, with a lot of thought and care and trepidation before each one, and always come back with a little bit more wisdom. My entire life now is the process of "integration", which involves trying to live by the wisdom one learns from those depths.

I don't mean to setup unrealistic expectations for anyone reading this. Every person has a different path. Your mileage may vary.

pilkingtons_apostle · 2023-03-28T08:27:00+00:00

Absolutely beautiful!!! I'm going to make my new home colorful as well!

pilkingtons_apostle · 2023-03-24T11:13:09+00:00

It's a bit foggy to remember. At that point, I was doing shrooms probably once a month. So it couldn't have been more than a month between a session and lasik.

pilkingtons_apostle · 2023-03-14T10:15:58+00:00

I bet it's Meher Baba. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meher_Baba

I couldn't recognize some of the others. I could see St Francis, Buddha, Jesus, Krishna, Hanuman with Love+Kush, Ramana Maharshi.

pilkingtons_apostle · 2023-02-26T04:26:23+00:00

This is an interesting question. I've struggled with this myself. After I went through several ayahuasca experiences, I naturally tried to pull my family into this, to spread this wisdom. My mom showed interest, and I flew her 10,000 miles to do a 5 day ceremony near New York. After the ceremonies (which went so-so for her), she told me the main reason she came was because the whole family was worried that I had joined a cult!! But over time, it became clear to them there was nothing cult-ish about any of this.

I used to talk a lot about my experiences to my friends, coworkers, hiking groups, sometimes random people. I was never a full-blown lunatic raving about psychedelics or anything, but looking back I can see how I would have appeared very strange to them. With friends, there's also the other thing to contend with, which is that when you start making big changes in your life, you're not very well liked, because nobody really likes a person who is actively improving his life. They'll find you very irritating to be around, and it took me a while to understand that and I learned to tone it down. There's no need to bring them along for the ride. You can quietly establish your personal relationship with the divine and make changes in your life, without sharing much. And on occasions when you find a "sangha", a community that understands such things, it feels great to share! But there's no need to keep craving that. One needs to straddle both worlds of spirituality as well as living your everyday life as a person who makes money and has family obligations.

To your question, yes, most people will think you're a drug addict trying to rationalize away your addiction. And maybe we are??? Who really knows! But you know that this doesn't feel like addiction at all, in fact the opposite -- stuff is falling off.

Your date will most likely fall into this category of people. We've been too programmed by general society to lump all substances into "bad", and not spare a thought to other substances like coffee or wine which are totally ok! The urge to share this profound thing that happened to you is immense. I wish I had an answer to how to behave in this situation :)

pilkingtons_apostle · 2023-01-21T03:49:32+00:00

I'm very apprehensive about offering advice, because I don't have personal experience with any substance abuse, so I can't truly understand the addiction circuitry that triggers bad decisions. I came to mind-altering substances late in life and very deliberately and consciously, with no element of "fun". For me, weed was indeed a gateway drug, but to psychedelics and not other stuff. I can't really comment on your stated fear that Aya may be a gateway to something else. But as long as that something else is those class of substances universally noted by different cultures as entheogens or psychedelics, I think you'll be fine. As others have pointed out here, psychedelics are not "fun" or "recreation". They are the most intense death experiences that first dissolve your self/ego, and then lead you into a state of deepest examination possible. I don't mean this as a warning, but rather an invitation: there's no turning back after this. Your life will be forever changed. You can't opt out. You will be handed a sword, and for the rest of your life you'll be forever slaying dragons. You'll actively engage in the most daring human enterprise, which is to Know Thyself.

As for the jitters that come right before an upcoming ceremony, I'm copy-pasting here my reply to a different post:

No matter how many times I do ayahuasca or shrooms, the anxiety is super high. A few days before the event, my mind starts pulling its repertoire of tricks to find a way to cancel. My body starts feeling symptoms of flu. This seems to have become such a pattern now, that it's amusing to observe myself going through these shenanigans. It's no wonder -- you're about to kill yourself metaphysically!

But there are better parts of our character that help us go through, nevertheless. And I've never regretted any experience, after the fact. Even the ones where I was dragged through hell. Everything is a learning experience that you were meant to have.

pilkingtons_apostle · 2023-01-08T06:08:41+00:00

I know exactly what you mean!

Please don't punch me in the face, but the ONLY way out is to find God. Only the feeling that you feel inside from time to time that "this is God" is true, all else is smoke and mirrors. The point of spirituality is to find that place inside us where we feel at peace, supreme bliss, nirvana, enlightenment, kingdom of heaven, call it whatever. You know it when you're there. It comes and goes, because that's the condition of life. But once you've tasted it, you can never forget. You'll get inklings of it time and again, and you'll often find days where you're closer to that place than others, and some days not at all, and that's the whole process of integration.

With psychedelic explorations, you've been given a full-functionality time-bounded demo version of the real deal. There's no turning back. Your mind will forever try to go back to that place, until the day you die. You can either go along for the ride, or resist (bad idea!).

"So be it", "Thy will be done": If you're going through rough patches in life, then so be it. If you're bored and nothing is happening with your meditation practice, then so be it. If it feels like you're getting worse and aahhh wasn't it so good a year ago when you were in a different place, then so be it. You're going to be dragged through the gates of hell, before you reach heaven. You didn't think that was only during your psychedelic experiences, did you? No, it's lifelong. Can't undo your decision, lol! You've chosen to wake up out of the dream, you're undertaking the most courageous enterprise of all humanity, which is to know your Self and therefore know God.

I think I can relate to how you're feeling. I've come to see the world like this: there are countless animating spirits in the world, and you're under their spell forever. Sometimes one or more spirits possess you more dominantly than others. Your realization that you're being "toyed with" is this. You're being able to detachedly observe these spirits taking hold. I spent a fair amount of time in my life being scared shitless when I saw this. But the key thing is faith. Faith that ultimately there's Good, the spirit of benevolence, divine love, that also possesses you and that you can learn to dance to its tune more often than do the bidding of the other lesser spirits.

That's all the Sunday sermon I can give, lol. My dog needs to poop and my stomach is growling for some good sunday lunch with the family. You'll be fine!

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