Are Rooms Really -That- Small

If you go to Japan on a budget? Yes. And even in some 4-star hotels, yes.

Our first hotel, in Asakusa, is very conveniently located. With tax it comes to under $80 a night, which is under what we had budgeted. We will be staying in a semi-double, which looks like this:

Hotel Yanagibashi

This hotel will probably have that t.v., the bed (likely a twin or full), a small bureau (only maybe), and a bathroom that will only accommodate a single person at a time. Hotels are the only place in Japan that I encountered a toilet and a shower in the same room. There will not be a closet or much room for a lot of luggage.

I remember tripping into the sink, exiting the shower.

When I last stayed in Kyoto, we were lodged in Kyoto Dai-Ni Tower Hotel. Here's a picture of what the bathroom looked like, courtesy of a TripAdvisor review. You can find more images here.

Our two other hotel rooms will probably be just as small. You can't expect cheap, large rooms in a country where land can cost many thousands of dollars per square foot. But you know what? This isn't a problem! I do not plan to spend my time in a hotel, I plan to spend it exploring. The tiny Dai-Ni room didn't bother me, even after staying in a large room in a private home. You know why? Because I was never there, except for mornings and evenings. You can also spend time in the lobby, getting to know fellow travelers if the room gets too claustrophobic.

Room size is the most common complaint I see on forums. Another is that the rooms are "dated". I think this may be cultural. In the U.S. most hotels with the same star rating seem to be updated every 5-6 years. Why is this such a big deal? I'm not sure. I personally find the "updates" in places like Springhill, Hyatt and other places to be a bit garish anyway. Springhill in particular always reminds me of the hotel rooms in Supernatural for some reason.

Nostalgia Post - Nara

Feeding Shika

In the summer of 2000 I was able to travel to Japan to study abroad, thanks to the generosity of two of my teachers. At the time I could have never have afforded the $3000 price tag. (At the time that was a steal!) I remember my family saving up so that I could have $300 in spending money and that being a -huge- deal.

 By the time we made it to Nara I was almost out of money. I had bought a yukata, candy, manga and souvenirs for my family. I also bought three peaches for $15... I used what little I had left to participate in the madness that is feeding the sacred deer. You buy a stack of senbei and are instantly mobbed by these national treasures!

This picture was taken in Nara with my first camera, a cheap, tiny Kodak that used 120 film. A friend took this shot of me feeding senbei (in my left hand) to one of the shika in Nara Park. I chose to feed this deer, in particular, because he wasn't attacking me. 

You can find many videos like this one on YouTube, just search for "Nara deer attack". You can also find videos of what is supposed to happen. If you bow to a deer, he will bow to you and then you hand over a senbei. This works occasionally, and when it does it's really cool. Sadly it seems far more likely that the hapless proffer-er of senbei will be mobbed. The deer will eat -anything-. They will eat your luggage tags, your maps, your scarves, anything they can get. One got my hair, one got a classmates crotch, I was stabbed with antlers. Sheer horror. Of course my husband wants to visit...

At least they're cute and tiny! Like really fancy goats!

Internet "Guides"

Now, back to the internet! Turns out it needs it's own entry, because it got too be too big.

TripAdvisor will get you reviews of hotels, hostels and guest houses that you will never find in a travel guide. (Not even Lonely Planet, which used to be renowned for this.) I found all three of our hotels for under $90 a night. In downtown Tokyo/Kyoto/Narita. In some rather good neighborhoods. It will help you find flights, car rentals and restaurants as well. When I went to Chicago in 2011, it helped me find a reasonable hotel for myself and three others, blocks from the Magnificent Mile . It also highly recommended the City Pass, which lead to checking more review sites, which in turn got us a wonderful deal. We got to visit all of the touristy things cheaply and cut lines! TripAdvisor also helped identify the best Giordonos. This trip went much better than the other times that I've just driven up and wandered around in a daze.

User reviews offer a broad range of POVs; you can read reviews from natives, citizens of other countries and people from your homeland. (The Google Chrome translation option can be very helpful here.) The user-age range is also rather broad. One such review helped me decide not to go to a certain gimmick restaurant because, without children along, it was actually rather over-priced and cheesy. (i.e. It's worth it when you have kids to entertain.) Another review, in Japanese, steered me away from a certain tourist trap in Kyoto where they dress you up to look like a Geiko/Maiko. A few natives were very disappointed in this studio and many tourists, as well. I also learned that on a certain long hike there are drink machines. The machines slowly increase in price as you climb the mountain! Good to know.

TripAdvisor also has forums where you can ask about restaurants, places of interest, travel dates and almost anything else and get feedback from real people who are likely not shilling for their place of business. Of course, there are many such forums - some are even for travelers with specific vacation goals, such as culinary tourism. ChowHound is a good example of this.

I've used Wikitravel for a variety of trips and it can be really hit-or-miss. Some of the entries don't flow well and display clumsy writing. However, you can find some good tips here too. Many of the entries for U.S. cities seem to be written by locals, which is nice.

Amazon is a great resource for getting guidebook reviews. Sometimes, based on these reviews, you can glean other information. Say a review says, "Guidebook did not include this awesome thing", you will now know about that awesome thing!

I have also, for the Japan trip, used Hyperdia. This site allows the user to view train schedules and plan routes. A friend recommended it and it seems indispensable.

Links:
http://wikitravel.org/en/Main_Page
http://www.tripadvisor.com/
http://www.hyperdia.com/en/
http://chowhound.chow.com/boards
http://www.japan-guide.com/


So you have something to look at, I will end this with a picture of myself and the husband on the scary, scary Sears Willis Tower SkyDeck. CityPass allowed us to skip a 2 hour line and go to the top after only 30 minutes! This is also another example of my philosophy to face fears for certain experiences. We were both absolutely terrified.

Sears Willis SkyDeck

*Vanity Note: That's my normal hair color. In the Costa Rica pictures I have the remnants of a dye job gone terribly wrong. <_>

Travel Guides

In these days of instant internet answers provided by Google, TripAdvisor and numerous forums, it might seem a bit odd to consider travel guides an important purchase. But when you're lost on some back road, turn up in the wrong town, don't speak the language well and don't have a computer, they come in pretty handy. There's also something to be said for being able to flip through a guide and read about culture, food, dress, places of interest and manners without needing to seek separate resources for each.

With that, I whittled through recommendations and piles of guides and here are the four I plan to take to Japan and why:

My Four Guides

You can see that I selected one EyeWitness guide, a pocket atlas from Tuttle and two Lonely Planet Guides. The top two guides were reviewed by checking them out from the local public library.  I checked out pretty much every guide they had on Japan and my husband and I chose the ones that seemed to be the best. You can also browse a bookstore or on-line reviews. This ensures you don't waste money on unhelpful guides. Also  note the post-it flags. They're not for everyone, but I like to use them as page markers.

I am very fond of EyeWitness books due to their layout, photos and information and this one was perfect. It contains tidbits almost every topic without being too large. It is full of glossy pictures and maps. It also contains a few errors, however, as you can see in the Amazon reviews. However, I adore it anyway. I guess this would be my fluff book.

The book to the right is a guide to Kyoto. Like most Lonely Planet guides it is lacking in gloss; rather plain.

Interior view.

What it lacks in fancy images, it makes up in information. This guide breaks down points of interest by neighborhood. Each neighborhood is described and the temples and other attractions in those neighborhoods are described. Above you can see Kyomizudera, with nearby restaurants, other points of interest and helpful tips. This guide also has some decent maps. The tiny blue flag marks the map of where we are staying, which is in the Gion district.

On the bottom left is a guide I bought purely based on on-line reviews. It turned out to be a great find!

Train and subway maps

This has a huge fold out map, which I am not sure about yet, and tons of tiny maps. Again, it is arranged by neighborhoods (note exactly the correct term, but I'm going to use it here. =P). Each area has a small map, with different sites, such as churches and more famous hotels, marked down. There is a guide to the metro system, which many can find confusing, shown as a whole and then split up into different lines. There are descriptions of how to use public transport to get around, how to get help and why you can't ever rely on addresses. There are also guides to day-trips from Toyko, which is a nice inclusion.

The final guide is simply a phrasebook. It has some basic vocabulary, useful phrases, etc. I can't really recommend it if you don't already have some knowledge of Japanese due to a few grammatical errors, but it's small and will be helpful for me.

Here are some of the criteria I used: Does the book have a good layout, does it include a bit of everything, have others found it useful, is it small/thin, is it relatively current, does it say things I know to be untrue, does it include maps.

Here is my pile of books, from recent buys, previous trips and classes. There's even a new one that we used to read up on cool sites that would appeal to geeks. As you can see, only a few made the cut!

Pile o' books

Common Forum Complaints

Here are some common complaints I have found in various travel forums, in regards to Japan.

1. My hotel room was too small! It was tiny! OMG! SMALL!!!
2. (Insert Place Here) was crowded!
3. Hotel proprietors didn't speak enough English! (Even when the same review mentions that they spoke enough to be helpful.)
4. Rooms are dated/old. (I think this is a cultural expectation? Here it seems like nicer hotels re-do their decor every 5-10 years?)
5. I wasn't allowed to take pictures! (Usually in a holy site or museum... Uh, that happens everywhere.)
6. Food is scary.
7. Tourist attraction was too touristy? 
8. Tourist attraction wasn't touristy enough~!

Travel Philosophies

I have very strong opinions about traveling and, specifically, tourism. When I go to a foreign country I go to have foreign experiences. What's the point of going to paradise and spending all of your time in an all-inclusive hotel, never venturing outside the grounds? I know some people really love this sort of vacation, but I loathe the idea. Why not explore? If you can't speak the language, and do not have friends in said country, then a tour guide or group tour is a great idea. Many places have packages where you may not have as much unstructured time, but at least you are getting out there, seeing important sites, meeting new people and being educated about your surroundings.

Here are my personal tips: (Disclaimer: Opinions are Opinion-y)

• Be as adventurous as possible. I don't think people should just head off into unfamiliar territory will-nilly (though, that too is just how some people like their vacation), but it's good to try new things. Leave your comfort zone if you can. No, this does not mean travel to the worst neighborhood possible in the middle of the night. It does mean maybe eating that weird raw fish thing or drinking that strange purple corn beverage or going to that unusual theater show.
• Know at least a few phrases in the local language. I -hate- the stereotype that Americans think everyone should speak English. I also hate that I've seen it reinforced again and again. When I went to Costa Rica I took some time to learn a bit of Spanish, even though I would be traveling with fluent speakers. Knowing that little bit helped me pick up a lot more along the way. 
• Visit famous places, but also look for the small things. Many of the towns I visited in CR had beautiful public parks, but when I was taking photos I was more interested in some of the regular parks in smaller towns.
• Don't be afraid of the local food (unless WHO says you should be). Don't eat at Americanized restaurants for every meal, if you do you will really miss out. Note: If you a a picky eater I am not judging you. If you suffer from an anxiety or dietary restriction, do what makes you comfortable.
• Do your research. Knowing what opportunities await will help you have a much better experience. Knowing what is publicly acceptable to do and what not to do will help you save face. Knowing what foods, areas and behaviors might be dangerous is never a bad idea. Also research medications (many are illegal in other countries in large quantities, or illegal period), where to seek medical treatment and what to do if you lose a prescription
• Find people in the know and ask them questions, directions, recommendations. This will help you find out where hidden treasures lie and what to avoid. It will also help you not get lost in the biggest cemetery you've ever been in because your friend didn't want to ask for directions.
• Have a schedule but be flexible. This rule is hard for me, but I try to follow it. Maybe you really need to skip something for a quick nap, or you see a flyer for something you'd rather do.
• Don't always listen to other people, especially your Mother-in-Law. In fact, do the opposite of what is said just to be contrary. (O.K., this is mostly a joke. Mostly)
• Get plenty of sleep, but not too much. Pretty obvious.
• Pack light! Last time I went to Japan we had things shipped between home-stay and hotels with a one-day service because luggage can be a pain! We brought an empty suitcase to CR for souvenirs.
• Budget, make sure your emergency credit cards work where you'll be going, keep a list of CC and bank phone-numbers in case something is stolen. Keep copies of all documents in the safest place you can.
• Go to a travelers forum and ask what people think are must haves in your suitcase. This will range from host gifts, to Febreeze, to tissues, to hard to acquire goods.
• Be respectful. Don't be loud in places of worship, don't assume no one else knows your native tongue,  don't violate local customs to see what will happen. 

I could probably go on, but this has gotten long enough. Here are some images of my philosophy in action, on my most recent big trip.

Ate at a Local Restaurant. Did not get food poisoning. Did get delicious food.

Asked the locals, was lead to this.

Ditched my fears, saw a Cloud Forest.

Ate this steak to spite my MiL and only mildly regretted it.

A Snippet of Costa Rica

We visited a number of provinces, but my favorite was Guanacaste. It was miserably warm there in June, but the landscape was gorgeous, navigation was easy and there were many wonderful restaurants, hidden vistas, plentiful wildlife and gorgeous beaches. 

Guanacaste Province

We flew in to Liberia, rented a car and traveled to Playa Del Coco where we stayed in a two-bedroom condo, with full amenities, for around $60 a night. You could see the beach from the condo, there was an accessible roof with an amazing view, and tiny restaurants, shops, stalls and mercados dotted the town. Others on our plane talked about their all inclusive hotels, with planned trips and no need to leave for anything. I think we probably got a better deal.

The area has been destroyed, in a way, by cattle farming. It's not like it was a few hundred years ago, but it is still gorgeous. Everything is so green and Guanacaste trees dot the fields. The cattle are adorable and full of character. Green Iguanas and Black Ctenosaurs are everywhere, as well as a vast number of birds. Our town was a nightly roost for raucous Boat-tailed Grackles. During one of the afternoon rains green parrots took refuge in a tree in the courtyard of our condo.

Click here for credit and more information.

One "secret" place a local told us about was Llanos de Cortez. We stopped on the way to Monte Verde in Alajuela and it was well worth the detour. Hardly anyone was there when we visited and it doesn't seem to be terribly well known among tourists. Comparing it to the local Midwestern swimming holes (Haha, quarry swimming. -_-) there were next to no similarities. The area was cared for, only a single piece of trash in site. It was peaceful, no cars rumbling by, no one shouting. There we few paths, with much of the undergrowth left untrampled. There were delicate fungi, moss, tiny waterfalls, a single colorful feather caught in the tree branches. 

Here I am, in front of the main falls.

There it is, a snippet about a trip that happened over three years ago.

Adventures in Adventuring.

A few months ago an opportunity came up for my husband to take on some extra work. We considered what do with the money rather carefully (planning, checking finances, budgeting, researching costs, using travel forums) and came to the conclusion that we could go on one of our dream vacations. When we were married we were rather short on money; our wedding ran us >$100 for the dress, food and license. Friends generously chipped in for a reception. Needless to say, we did not have a honeymoon. We've now been married a bit over 11 years and have gone on many small vacations and one large trip.

The smaller trips include visits to family and family owned properties in places such as Atlanta, Miami and the Gainesville area of Florida. We have also gone to Chicago for fun and San Francisco and Pittsburgh for school visits. I'm not even going to add the umpteen trips to Ren Faires, LARPs, magical cities that have Trader Joes, etc.

In 2009 my in-laws paid for us to go to Costa Rica for a 9 day family trip. My husband grew up there and had always wanted to show me the country. I had been obsessed with Monte Verde since reading about it in National Geographic at the age of 11. It was a wonderful experience, only hindered by the fact that we were on the in-laws schedule and had no free days. We got to do many things we wanted to do and missed many others. One particular adventure involved sneaking away to get drinks at a small cafe because we were assured eating anywhere like that would give us food poisoning. I had horchata, which was delicious and caused not a single bit of intestinal distress.

So, anyway, to make a long and ramble-y entry short, we are planning to go to Japan at the end of the year. I have studied Japanese from ninth grade until senior year of undergrad. In 2000 I spent a summer doing homestay there. I pursued and undergraduate degree in East Asian Studies, focus on Japan. My husband has also studied the language and had an obsession with the country for a long while, but he has never been. Being one of the first things we found that we had in common, being someplace that one of us had been to but the other had not, and general geeky desires made Japan an obvious choice for our grand adventure.

I have created this blog to document our planning, our list of things to do, our itinerary, famous tourist spots and, ultimately, our trip there. I will add other content as well; snippets from Costa Rica, my travel philosophy, photos and miscellaneous other bits.