Job Discussion Forums

[Apsara]

Well, I have lived in Tokyo for 10 years, and I disagree. Food and drinks at supermarkets and convenience stores cost pretty much the same here as anywhere else in Japan I have been. At places like OK Discount Stores they are almost unbelievably cheap. Yoshinoya-style Japanese fast food, Western fast food and cafe food cost the same all over Japan in my experience.

There are 100 yen shops all over the place in Tokyo- perhaps you didn't find one where you lived (which part of Tokyo?), but there is no shortage of them in the western suburbs where I live. Perhaps you couldn't get the discount sushi at the place you shopped, but at the supermarkets I have been to there is plenty of discounted stuff left when I arrive- I get lots of vegetables, salads, norimaki etc half price if I go to the supermarket on my way home at about 9pm.

Books? Why should they be more expensive in Tokyo? There are a number of second-hand English bookshops in Tokyo to choose from, and at Book-Off you can get secondhand English paperbacks for 100-500 yen. Where do you buy books in Fukuoka?

I don't know about internet cafes, but are they really that much more expensive in Tokyo? I would think competition in Tokyo would keep prices down, but perhaps not. I don't know about that one since I haven't been to an internet cafe in Japan for years.

And bikes? You mean the same shopping bike costs more in Tokyo than in other parts of Japan? Again, that seems strange.

I found the subway in Kyoto and Sapporo to be more expensive than in Tokyo- the cheapest tickets were 200 yen or more, whereas a subway ride starts from 160 yen in Tokyo. Distances are greater, true, so that can add to costs a bit here.

Other than rent, Tokyo is not expensive if you know where to look.

[seklarwia]

Having been to like for like shops around my prefecture and in Tokyo, I wouldn't say that the regular prices of things in stores are so different. The main thing I found more costly was simply getting around.
When you are used to local buses taking you across town (or round town in the case of Nagano City) for 100Y per ride, Tokyo transportation can seem frightfully expensive.

And around here, if more elusive things are to be found anywhere, its going to be at the malls, superstores or shops around the shinkansen station which quicky became the new city centre once the line was completed; there is no need to travel around on public transport from one part of town to another in order to find things.

Not a cost issue, but one thing that I have found a pain in Tokyo is the much smaller range of brands for individual goods on offer in all the regular supermarkets I have visited. I know space is at a premium around the heart of Tokyo so supermarkets are going to be much smaller than those typically found out here but still...

[Bread]

[Apsara]

Actually this topic came up recently, but I might not have given the names of the shops in that thread. Here are the two whose names I can remember off the top of my head: Good Day Books in Ebisu and Blue Parrot in Takadanobaba. There is (or used to be) also one in Kichijoji, and no doubt there are others. Some Book-Off stores have a few shelves of English books, hit and miss whether there is anything decent at any given time though. The Book-Off in Ogikubo on the Chuo line usually has a reasonable selection, and other large branches no doubt do as well.

I take my old books to Good Day a few times a year- the give credit vouchers you can use to buy more books, and I think the Blue Parrot does the same. Good Day and Blue Parrot aren't super cheap, but it does give you a way to get rid of old books and then get a few new ones in exchange.

[Bread]

[QuasiJL]

I definitely want to go to Tokyo. I've been there before and I'm looking to go to a big city. As for the expenses, I found Tokyo not overly expensive, its just really really easy to spend money.

I'm trying to book a ticket right now. Anyone know any good times to book tickets? I have a few options. I live in Edmonton but I might go to New york first. Any cheap airliners leaving from New York, Boston or Washington?

[Apsara]