The import duty on English-language books and magazines in Japan blows your mind. ¥600~¥800 for your daily newspaper, ¥1500 for the New Yorker or Economist, ¥2000 for a novel.

If you are new to Tokyo, never mind the price, just locating English-language books can be an issue. Here are my favorite ... read more »]]> The import duty on English-language books and magazines in Japan blows your mind. ¥600~¥800 for your daily newspaper, ¥1500 for the New Yorker or Economist, ¥2000 for a novel.

If you are new to Tokyo, never mind the price, just locating English-language books can be an issue. Here are my favorite places:

If you just like reading and don’t mind what

See my earlier post on Freecycle & Sayonara Sales. Hang out on the Freecycle mailing list for a while and a bag of assorted books usually pops up, alternatively, foreigners leaving town give away books as the first order of business so larger, open-house Sayonara Sales are a good bet.

Magazines and Newspapers

There isn’t a real cheap way of getting these. It may work out more economical to subscribe to your favorites on the international tariff rather than buying them in Tokyo. If you just need an occasional fix, these are the top foreign-language stocking bookstores.

Aoyama Book Center (Roppongi & Omote Sando)
Stocks a large range of fashion, current affairs, and especially arts, design magazines. The Roppongi branch also has free English language magazine Metropolis by the counter and a good selection of (expensive) English language fiction, Japanese study books, and travel guides in the back of the store. The ABC stores are quite heavily focused on arts books so you may find the odd book in the Japanese section that is English.


Kinokuniya (Shinjuku)
Both the main Kinokuniya (East Exit) and the larger branch store (Southern Terrace Exit) have fashion, style, and current affairs magazines as well as a few newspapers in stock, but the larger Southern Terrace store probably has a larger selection. Massive (for Japan) English language fiction and non-fiction section as well.


Tower Records (Shibuya)
Tower Records was the first place I found English language books in Japan. It has a good selection but ABC is probably better for magazines, and Kinokuniya is probably better for books. It stocks the Guardian Weekly and sometimes The Times for UK customers, has free English weekly Metropolis, and an exhaustive collection of Lonely Planet guides for anywhere you might care to go.

Used Book Stores

The used book stores in Tokyo may have a larger selection that the stock in any of the mainstream stores listed above. The choice is limited to what other Tokyo residents have been reading but you’d be surprised what you find.
Check out:

The Blue Parrot (Takadanobaba)
Friendly service and they pay the best price for books if you need to sell any. Large selection of fiction and Japan / Japanese related material but also stocks a fair amount of non-fiction and some DVDS. Look out for periodic sales, advertised in Metropolis, for super-value half price days. Website is here blueparrottokyo.com

Good Day Books (Ebisu)
Good Day Books claims to be Tokyo’s biggest and best with over 40,000 books in stock. It also has quite a community around it with a book club (though this seems to be aimed at quite a specific.. male audience – all geopolitics and war… no Jane Austen fans here. The homepage is gooddaybooks.com

Specific Books

Best place for books that you absolutely need is amazon.co.jp which you should be able to navigate in English. Japan’s version of Amazon allows you to select cash on delivery as a payment method, which avoids any need for a credit card if you don’t have one. Just pay the delivery guy when he gets to your door.

That’s about it, just make sure not to buy or sell books from Book Off which is a complete rip-off. They buy English-language books for a fraction of the Japanese-book price and sell them for way over the Japanese-book price.

This post is for those who have already got their translation. See my introduction in Part 1, here

Post Nav jump to… Things to Bring Easy and Hard Nationalities Exempt from Practical Test If you are American or other non-exempt country Getting to the Licensing Authority

You have your translation! If not see Part ... read more »]]> This post is for those who have already got their translation. See my introduction in Part 1, here

Post Nav
jump to…
Things to Bring
Easy and Hard
Nationalities Exempt from Practical Test
If you are American or other non-exempt country
Getting to the Licensing Authority

Things to Bring

You have your translation!
If not see Part 1, here

You have your driving license
including counter-part for those that have one

Your Passport
(says to have ALL the passports since you got your license, but not sure how strict that is)

Your Alien Registration Card
(which says you are legally in the country and you live in the area)

A Passport Photograph
3cm x 2.4cm

Something that proves you were in the country you obtained your license from (not Japan) for more than 90 days
(in my case my degree certificate proving I was in the country, at school)

Easy and Hard

Sorry guys, there is a catch. What is your nationality? Japan gives an easy ride to those from 22 countries and 1 region.

If you are in the list of countries below you should be able to get your license transferred by submitting the documents above

Nationalities Exempt from the Practical Test

• 
  Australia
• 
  Austria
• 
  Belgium
• 
  Canada
• 
  Czech Republic
• 
  Denmark
• 
  Finland
• 
  France
• 
  Germany
• 
  Greece
• 
  Holland
• 
  Iceland
• 
  Ireland
• 
  Italy
• 
  Luxembourg
• 
  New Zealand
• 
  Norway
• 
  Portugal
• 
  South Korea
• 
  Spain
• 
  Sweden
• 
  Switzerland
• 
  Taiwan
• 
  UK

If you are not in the list above you will have to take a practical test which you will likely fail a few times before you get your license (Americans fall in to this category, oh the irony)

If you are American or other non-exempt country

Oh bad luck to you. The process for getting a driver’s license with a test involved is much more money and time. I suggest you seriously evaluate your need for a car in this, the most heavenly of all public transport-ified countries in the world, as a hint to learn about sustainable transport. Please take what you learn back to America and reduce your country’s environmentally reckless dependence on cars……. If you are really determined to get your license however *groan*, this guy gives you a pretty in-depth run down of the practical test: Pass the driving test in Japan.

Getting to the Licensing Authority

As I mentioned in Part 1:

The place where you get your translation and where you get your license are different places!.

Again, there are 2 to choose from. Both in completely stupid locations. Seriously, who thought it was a good idea to put the offices for people applying, but not yet having driving licenses in locations that are *really* difficult to get to using public transport…. what bastards.

Samezu

The least stupid of the 2 in terms of location is Samezu. This is located an 8 minute walk from Samezu station which you can reach by changing at Shingawa on to the 京浜急行 (Keihin Kyuko) Line.
The address is: 品川区東大井1-12-5 (1-12-5 Higashi-oi, Shingawa-ku).
Phone: 03-3474-1374
Opening times: Weekdays, 8:00~11:00, 13:00~15:00

Fuchu

The complete *mission*, is Fuchu driving license, located no where near Fuchu. Take your pick from the following 4 stations from which to get a bus from:
JR Musashi-Koganei: Take the Keio bus headed for Tamacho or Chofu Station.
JR Mitaka: Take the Odakyu bus for Musashi-Koganei
Keio Chofu: Take Keio bus for Musashi Koganei
Keio Tama Reien: Take Keio bus for Musashi Koganei
The address is: 府中市多磨町3-1-1 (3-1-1 Tamacho, Fuchu-city).
Phone: 042-362-3591
Opening times: Weekdays, 8:00~11:00, 13:00~15:00

Conclusion: a driver’s license will benefit you in a few select situations in Japan. If your nationality is one of those exempt from the practical test, the procedures are straightforward. If not, consider whether you need a license in the best public transit enabled country in the world.

This post introduces you to driving in Japan

Post Nav jump to… Do you really need a car? Having said that… Easy and Hard Nationalities Exempt from Practical Test ★ The First Step – Translation ★ Getting There Things you need to bring Stage one: Complete

Let me start this post with a brief preamble.

If you are new to Japan, let me tell you about Golden Week. It is a glorious time when nobody works and everybody travels….and I do quite mean EVERYBODY! If you know what is good for you…Don’t leave the house!

I am giving you fair warning to let you know that ... read more »]]> If you are new to Japan, let me tell you about Golden Week. It is a glorious time when nobody works and everybody travels….and I do quite mean EVERYBODY! If you know what is good for you…Don’t leave the house!

I am giving you fair warning to let you know that Shibuya and Shinjuku will be twice as crowded…It is normally pretty crowded, but it’s usually efficient at least.

People book their vacations MONTHS in advance…sometimes even half a year. If you are planning to do an impromptu trip, it is going to cost you a lot of money. Even the cheap places mark up their prices. You can expect to spend at least 10,000 yen to travel and eat for a few days during golden week.

Notes: Travel activity is anticipated to peak on May 2 with people leaving the large urban centers and on May 6 in the opposite direction. Heavy traffic can also be expected on April 29 and May 3 and 5.

A Bit ‘o’ History
In 1948, Japan decided on holidays. They just so happened to all be concentrated into one week, end of April to early May. There is a huge spike in spending during this week and everybody makes money! In 1951, “Jiyū Gakkō” had record sales and the director of Daiei Films to coined the phrase”Golden Week” based on the Japanese radio lingo “golden time,” which denotes the period with the highest listener ratings.

So…if you think there is some awesome ancient history about golden week….sorry to disappoint. It’s kinda like how department stores in New York invented Santa and Coca Cola made him red. It’s still awesome though^_^.

At the time, April 29 was a national holiday celebrating the birth of the Shōwa Emperor. Upon his death in 1989, the day was renamed “Greenery Day”. In 2007, Greenery Day was moved to May 4, and April 29 was renamed Shōwa Day to commemorate the late Emperor.

Thought this was funny… so I tried to google image some pictures for this blog post. This is the first image that comes up..it is a Japanese ad for getting a wax…I guess everyone was clicking on it..haha.

http://www.nuajapan.com/campaigns

Karōshi 過労死 is Death by Overwork Only in Japan does such a thing exist or is even an issue. Japan has been known for it’s hustle and bustle lifestyle but not without a cost. All those who live in Japan know that when it turns night, every izakaya is ... read more »]]>
Karōshi 過労死 is Death by Overwork

Only in Japan does such a thing exist or is even an issue. Japan has been known for it’s hustle and bustle lifestyle but not without a cost. All those who live in Japan know that when it turns night, every izakaya is filled with drunken salarymen. However, for every one of those there is one somewhere else working excessive overtime.

Karoshi is usually a stroke or heart attack. However, suicide that was caused by stress is also considered Karoshi. This is a recognized death by insurance companies. If a family member dies of Karoshi the company that they worked for will pay out the family…not well mind you.

This is a serious problem in Japan and they have attempted to rectify it, but after understanding the dynamics of the culture, I can say that it won’t change anytime soon. The expectation from workers is intense.

I know people who sleep a a couple hours a night to than wake up and go to work. The offices pay for dinner and taxi cab fare. I also know people who’s companies have paid for hotels nearby the office so that they do not need to leave for too long.

I will leave the topic of crazy suicide rates in Japan for another day. Now please enjoy this un-PC game based on Karoshi

ENJOY!

This is by far is the most beautiful sight you will ever see. No photograph can ever do it justice. When it is that time of year, all time seems to stand still. The endless white and pink pedals fluttering down makes you feel blessed that you ... read more »]]> This is by far is the most beautiful sight you will ever see. No photograph can ever do it justice. When it is that time of year, all time seems to stand still. The endless white and pink pedals fluttering down makes you feel blessed that you are alive. You see it in movies and you hear about it but this is a once in a life time MUST SEE! So for all those in Japan…you should feel blessed.

Sakura Season varies from location to location. For Tokyo it is blossoming right now! There is actually an adventure called Sakura Chasing. Because of the change in climate from north to south, spring hits at a different time. You can thus travel from North to South chasing blossoming sakura for about a month and a half. You can imagine that it is an expensive endeavor. However, I hope to one day do it myself

Hanami (花見) - It literally means “Flower Watching”. It is when Sakura Season comes, and you pretty much go get drunk with your friends all day long. People will spend the night in the cold to reserve the best hanami spots through out the park!

When I say drunk..I don’t mean a little tipsy… People get PLASTERED! They do CRAZY things. The norm is dancing, singing songs, play instruments, doing homoerotic dares…o_O like the boys in this photo…—>

Preparation: Bring a tarp, blanket, alcohol, TONS of snacks, and a Camera!(you never know what your gonna see!) I saw some guys go swimming in the public pond!

Warning: The line to go to the bathroom is going to be enormous…so if you need to go start waiting in line early, and don’t wait till that absolute LAST MINUTE!!!

Inokashira Park:

5 min walk from Kichijoji (JR Chuo Line)
1 min walk from Inokashira Kōen (Keio Line)
…Just follow the signs that say Inokashira Park.

Shinjuku Gyoen National Park:(MAP)


JR・KEIO・ODAKYU Lines:Shinjuku sta. “south exit” 10min. walk
SEIBU SHINJUKU Line: Seibu shinjuku sta. 15min. walk
Marunouchi Line(Subway): Shinjuku gyoen mae sta. “Exhit1″ 5min. walk
Toei Shinjuku Line(Subway): Shinjuku 3 chome sta.: “C１&C５exit” 5min. walk

Don’t know where to go? Just follow the trail of Japanese people! TAKE SOME GREAT PICTURES!

Hey all,

Sorry for the delay in recent posts. It’s mid-terms time, and I can’t write as many posts as I would like. I will be moving this blog to tokyosurvival.com soon, so look forward to it! For now, please enjoy and attend the Kanamura festival.^_^ I ... read more »]]> Hey all,

Sorry for the delay in recent posts. It’s mid-terms time, and I can’t write as many posts as I would like. I will be moving this blog to tokyosurvival.com soon, so look forward to it! For now, please enjoy and attend the Kanamura festival.^_^ I attended it last year and it was great!

Warning: there will be 70%+ gaijin attending.

-Claudia

What: Kanamara Matsuri (Festival of the Steel Phallus)
When: April 5 (Sunday)
Where: Kawasaki, Kanagawa

Start time: 10:30AM(it is best to go earlier)
End time: 4:30PM

Nearest station: Kawasakidaishi (Keikyu line)
Direction: Take the south exit and follow the Gaijin crowd. Kanayama shrine is just a minute walk from the station.

The Kanamara Matsuri, also called Festival of the Steel Phallus, or in layman’s term “Penis festival”, is an annual Shinto fertility festival held in Kawasaki, Japan in spring. The penis is the central theme of the event, and it decorated in every aspect of the festival; in illustrations, candy, carved vegetables, decoration, a parade of mikoshis, etc.

There is a huge 4 foot tall penis permanently at the shrine year round.

The best part about this festival is that it is right next to a kindergarten school o_o

Note: Not too many Japanese people know about this festival, it is more popular in foreign countries, so be careful who you speak to this about this wild festival. You might still get odd looks if you flaunt your pictures. ENJOY!

Check URL’s for:
* Train times & connections
* Weather forecast
* Kanamara festival
* Photos

(some of this information was copied from a Tokyo Gaijin e-mail)

空気読めない Kuuki Yomenai = K.Y.(Adj,,n.)

When I first heard it I thought of something dirty. Don’t lie, you know you did too! It literally means “cannot read the air” While you are living in Japan you will find this is a commonly used phrase. It is NOT ONLY used by young people. ... read more »]]>
空気読めない
Kuuki Yomenai = K.Y.(Adj,,n.)

When I first heard it I thought of something dirty. Don’t lie, you know you did too!

It literally means “cannot read the air”

While you are living in Japan you will find this is a commonly used phrase. It is NOT ONLY used by young people. It is referring to a person who is oblivious to his current surrounding, and may say or do something insensitive or inappropriate.

This has a negative connotation of ignorance.
Synonymous words would be : Dense or Thick-headed.
Another variation is C.K.Y.
C is for Chou = super, really, extremely

Aizuchi (相槌 or あいづち)

It is the act of nodding your head an uttering something to reassure the speaker that you are listening. This is VITAL to communicating in Japan.

The noise that is often used is:

To be safe, just stick with the ... read more »]]>
Aizuchi (相槌 or あいづち)

It is the act of nodding your head an uttering something to reassure the speaker that you are listening. This is VITAL to communicating in Japan.

The noise that is often used is:

• “un”
• “ee”(pronounced “eh”)
• “hai”
• “soune”
• “sou desuka”
• “sou desune”
• more variations of “sou”(haha)
• variations of “hontou”

To be safe, just stick with the top 3.

When: when any Japanese person is talking, regardless of status.

How: constantly nod your head(like a boggle head), and say “un” every 4-6 nods.

Why: To be polite, and further integrated in the culture that is Japan.

I actually participated in a study on how Gaijin learn or pick up Aizuchi. They recorded me speaking Japanese and English. If you live their long enough and you converse enough in Japanese you WILL pick it up. It’s only when you go back to your country that people ask you why you keep constantly nodding and interrupting them, that you realize that you subconsciously picked it up.