Ye Olde Japan Thread

[manuel]

This thread will be about Japan, as announced in the "food section". 
I will post general information about Japan and how to go and survive there. You could also buy travel guides (what I recommend), but I will describe most points from the POV of a gamer. 
If you have questions, feel free to ask whatever you like.

Let's start with the flight.
Choose a company of your confidence. I can't give too many good tips on the flight itself. From Europe the prices are reasonable.
My last flight I paid for myself was under 900$.
The prices depend on the season. Cheapest is around March or September. (This is for Europe, I don't know how America is...)

Staying in Japan:
The probably cheapest way to stay in Japan are youth hostels. Prices are from 1500 up to 5000Yen (15-50$)for a night. Hotels are more expensive.
And don't fear hostels, they are better than their reputation.
Japan Youth Hostels Inc. have an English homepage where you can even place your reservation.
One hint: You should NOT be afraid of cockroaches or big jumping spiders when you go to Japan.   
If you want to stay longer, you should look for so-called weekly or monthly rooms, where you get discount for staying longer.

I hope we can discuss a lot here.

[Har the cat]

Cool thread manuel. Im very interested in this country. I want  go to a street so called akihabar(or something) correct me if im wrong.
Do you have there also vegetarian food, or only fish dishes? Maybe a stupid question but i dont know much about japan.

[FamicomFreak]

Wow that's some great info Manuel. I'll certainly need all of this info when I travel next year. I think it's low season right here in the States because I have seen some mad cheap tickets to different countries. For example, for my home country Peru I found a ticket for 180bucks!!! both ways!! That's really cheap. Right now it's a great time to buy tickets for the upcoming holiday season.

[manuel]

Cool thread manuel. Im very interested in this country. I want  go to a street so called akihabar(or something) correct me if im wrong.
Do you have there also vegetarian food, or only fish dishes? Maybe a stupid question but i dont know much about japan.

Akihabara is a part of Tokyo with lots and lots of electronics shops. I guess we all would like to go there.
And fret not, Japan also has vegetarian food. The best stuff is with fish or meat, though. 
You'll definitely find something you like. There's also vegetarian sushi. Tofu dishes are good, too.

[JC]

Awesome thread idea...as I start making some decisions about trippin' to Japan I'll probably make good use of this thread.

As for the flights, I haven't looked into it at all yet, but my brother traveled to Taiwan a few months ago and paid about $900 for the flight, so I suspect it'd be about the same for Japan. I'm not looking forward to the 15 hours or so it's gonna take over the Pacific.

And I hope I don't have to pay for a place to stay, if my friend in Japan is still there and kind enough to provide me with a pillow. Thing is, space is tight and he's got roommates, plus a shit load of Famicom stuff stacked up everywhere.

[JC]

What's the weather like in March?

[manuel]

For my standards the weather in May is already quite warm.
Of course that also depends on the region you're visiting.
If you're in Southern regions you may see the beautiful cherry blossoms.

[JC]

Wait...May?

[manuel]

Sorry.  I meant to write March. (The description is for March)

May is already quite warm and the cherry blossoms have basically all fallen down already.

March is a very good month to visit Japan in my opinion. Flights should be cheap, too.

[JC]

Ah...sounds nice. I was under the impression that there was a longer cold season in Japan than what I'm used to (November to February). But it's cool that spring is upon most of Japan by March.

[manuel]

The farther you go south the warmer the weather is all year.
My experiences of March in Japan were very warm, I mostly walked around in T-shirts and shorts.

[manuel]

Personal manuel update:

I have thought a lot these days and talked with my wife and her family in Japan (international phone calls FTW).
Finally I have come to the conclusion that I don't want to live....  .... in Germany    any more.
My plans for now is that I'll try to save up as much money as possible until next year.
After our son is born we'll wait for about 4-6 months and then we will most likely (probability >90%) move to Japan. This will be better for both me and my wife.
Best thing: we have already a house there with all the needed furniture supplied. Rent is cheap and it's near my wife's grandpa's house and temple. Very nice.
I only have to find a job there. I will try to earn money as a (freelance) translator and maybe I'll guide tours through the city for foreigners if the demand is there,

What do you think of my plans?
Any kind, encouraging words would be nice.

[UglyJoe]

Are you able to get a longterm visa via your wife, or will that depend on your job?

[manuel]

As far as I could research I think I will get a permanent visa very quickly because of my wife.
And as I already have a guaranteed place to live, and my wife's family can act as guarantors, I see no problem there.

[UglyJoe]

Cool 

From what I've read (gaijin blogs, mostly), dealing with bureaucratic processes in a foreign country can become a total nightmare.  I hope the process goes as quickly and smoothly as planned!