Five things you should know about Japan before going.

Japan. What's not to love?

Matsumoto Castle

Japan has been at the top of my travel bucket-list for a long time. Before going I had quite some ideas and images in my head of what it would be like. Partly caused by movies and stories of friends who study Japanology I had very high expectations about the country. I would love to see the Cherry Blossoms and the Snow Monkey's for instance. I was very excited about Japanese girls. Admitted I am pretty excited about any kind of girls but still, Japanese girls seemed slightly more interesting than the girl next door. And than the food. Glorious food! Who does not love Sashimi? Oh, and isn't Japan the country that is abound with volcano's and an earthquake a day? Yummy. Let's Go!

But it is very expensive! And they don't have many backpackers there! And they don't speak English! What the heck. I am an experienced traveller, I have been around and I am not scared of just going to Japan and see what happens. So there I went. Booked a ticket to stay a full month, bought a three week Japan Railpass and left.

1. Japan is very hot and humid in Summer. Of course, I have been to many hot places before, some of which were humid but hey you just chill out most of the day and make the most of the times when it has cooled of. Nothing wrong with that strategy but I was a bit disappointed by the fact that there actually are no SNOW MONKEY'S TO BE FOUND IN THE SUMMERTIME. Errr. Right, I could have known that, and did of course but somehow, the picture of snow monkey's on the edge of a hot onsen spring never had left my mind... until I arrived in the Japanese Alps and it poured hot water all day long. Somehow I thought that at least the North, Hokkaido, would be a cooler place... but in August... not really.

in Kyoto

2. Cherry trees DO NOT BLOSSOM IN SUMMER. Oh, right, yeah. That I could have thought of as well. But why are there so many pictures to be found on the internet with the coolest blossoms in front of the coolest temples? I can figure that one out by myself but there you have it. Same like the monkeys, in my mind there were cherry blossom everywhere all year round. Although, being from Amsterdam, I do realize the Tulips in the "Keukenhof" only flower for about a Month by the end of April...

3. I am an alien in Japan. I don't speak Japanese. And the majority of Japanese don't speak English but that is of course not the only problem. Fact is that Japanese are so rich they don't really need tourists. We are looked upon as poor buggers with little money that walk around in drags and look for cheap places that are hardly to be found in Japan. Our manners are rude and if they don't understand us we become very loud. Therefore I was very interesting to Japanese girls. To giggle about. To wave at. To take a photograph with... but there was no real interaction going on whatsoever. The Japanese culture is very strong and you are expected to adjust, for they are never gonna adjust to your culture. They haven't in the past and they don't intend to now. Japan is the best place in the world. They look at the rest of the world. Take what they like, make it Japanese, and leave it there. I have met westerners in Nagasaki who nearly went mad for they had no people to relate to. I met a Dutch friend there who admitted to me he was so happy to see me, just so he could act normal for a bit. Say what you feel and think without insulting someone's feelings... Japan is a different planet.

Shibuya crossing in Tokyo

4. Japan is modern. But it is not "Western" at all! The Japanese culture is traditional but traditional Japan is quite hard to find. The Japan that you see in the movies is often reconstructed in China. The temples of Kyoto are surrounded by a neon-lit noisy concrete city and spread out over this large (pop. 1.5 mln) place. You can find some traditional areas in Japan that are crowded with... Japanese tourists for they have become tourist attractions. I have not been able to find such a thing as Japanese countryside. They have used all the money that they make to find technical solutions for any problem that might occur. And a traditional house is not as comfortable as a concrete apartment so they have all disappeared. In Tokyo and Kyoto you find foot-rikshaw, comparable with the bicycle-rikshaw you would seen in India or Cambodya that look traditional... But these are run by well managed companies and would charge at least 10 euro's per 15 minutes. Traditional Japan is hard to find. You better be aware of that.

5. Yeah, we all know. Japan is expensive. How expensive? Well at least I covered most of my travel-expenses by booking my JR rail-pass ahead, for 525 euro's. And I thought I had some of my accommodation covered by applying for a couch on couchsurfing.com but it appeared that there are not so many couches available in Japan. The reason for this may be that Japanese are generally, culturally not very open and that their houses are very little. Oh, and the Summertime is the O-bon season. The time of year when the Japanese honour their ancestors and have lot's of festivals. The time of year when all Japanese go an a holiday which gives a bit of extra pressure on the couchsurfers availability of course. So accommodation wise... A bed in a back-packers hostel will set you back about 30 euro's, and so does a spot in a Capsule Hotel. One note: There are not many hostels and the ones in Lonely Planet are always full. So reserve well ahead if you can. Otherwise check out the local tourist information. A nice option could be to stay in a Love Hotel. Double rooms start at 60 euro but you can only stay from 11pm till 11 am. And you need to speak Japanese in most Rabu Hoteru (Which is Japanese for Love Hotel). A room in a business hotel starts at about 70 euros. I never used that option. A traditional Japanese guesthouse, a Ryokan, looks very nice and will start at about 75 euros per person, usually including some meals.
All in all... staying a full month in Japan will set you back about 1200 euro's. And than you can start thinking about food. Glorious food. But it may not surprise you that this is also quite expensive. When you go to Thailand you will find that local, Thai food is much cheaper than you would find it back home. Somehow that doesn't go for Japan. Sushi and Sashimi at the heart of the produce, the Tsukiji fish markets, is more expensive than where I live in Amsterdam.
In many a place around the world, i.e. the Arab World you can bargain a better price if you go for it. Don't expect any of this in Japan. Japanese stick to the rules and you better get used to their rules.

Food in Minjuku, traditional Hotel

Japan is a great experience! But is has been the hardest country for me to travel in and believe me, I have certainly been around. I have been spoilt by the world and was slightly disappointed with the (lack of) natural beauty in Japan. Somehow I got side tracked and missed my glance at Mt. Fuji. That alone will be a reason for me to go back. Even better prepared and Japan deserves my second chance. Maybe during Springtime?

Hiroshima A Bomb centre

When you go, I hope I have been some help to you on the part of expectations management. I could have used some of that! Read more about my travels, do's and don'ts at my weblog new-world-adventures.