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what should i see? two weeks in japan
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maryknight



Joined: 12 Oct 2005
Posts: 83

PostPosted: Sat Apr 22, 2006 3:11 pm    Post subject: what should i see? two weeks in japan Reply with quote

i'll arrive in tokyo on may 10th and i'll get to stay 2 weeks. i'm getting a rail pass. what do you recommend? it's a sightseeing/check out japan trip with some job search included.
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angrysoba



Joined: 20 Jan 2006
Posts: 446
Location: Kansai, Japan

PostPosted: Sat Apr 22, 2006 3:19 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Nara (see Todaiji temple and Horyuji temple). Try crawling through the hole at the base of one of the pillars in Todaiji. If you do you will become enlightened. I went through, it's not as difficult as it looks.

Whenever anyone asks why I am so wise, then I tell them about that.
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seanmcginty



Joined: 27 Sep 2005
Posts: 203

PostPosted: Sat Apr 22, 2006 11:17 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

angrysoba wrote:
Nara (see Todaiji temple and Horyuji temple). Try crawling through the hole at the base of one of the pillars in Todaiji. If you do you will become enlightened. I went through, it's not as difficult as it looks.

Whenever anyone asks why I am so wise, then I tell them about that.


I tried that. My wife made it, but I didn't stand a chance, couldn't even fit my shoulders through!


Maryknight,

I second the recommendation to see Nara. You should also go to Kyoto for a couple of days, there is a lot to see there. Himeji is also in the Kansai area, the caslte there is really nice.
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PAULH



Joined: 28 Jan 2003
Posts: 4672
Location: Western Japan

PostPosted: Sat Apr 22, 2006 11:48 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

seanmcginty wrote:

I second the recommendation to see Nara. You should also go to Kyoto for a couple of days, there is a lot to see there. Himeji is also in the Kansai area, the caslte there is really nice.


I will add that the castle in Himeji is the real deal. Most were bombed during the war or burnt down by fire. The one in Osaka is a concrete reconstruction built in about 1930.

You could spend a week in Kyoto and not see everything. Best idea is take one of the half day or full day bus tours.

Todaiji is the largest wooden building in the world and houses a huge Buddha statue.
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earache



Joined: 23 Mar 2006
Posts: 15
Location: Japan

PostPosted: Sun Apr 23, 2006 12:55 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Try these sites for travel info and tips. On Japan Guide, in particular, you'll find your exact question asked over and over and suggested itineraries have been posted in response.

www.japan-guide.com
http://www.japaneselifestyle.com.au/
www.jnto.go.jp
http://www.japanwelcomesyou.com/cssweb/
www.jyh.or.jp/english (youth hostels)
http://gojapan.about.com/


The following sites are photo sites or photoblogs based in Japan. Have a look through and make a check list of what you would like to see yourself. Dave even has a photo collection up and running (see sticky at the top of the Japan forum)

http://japan.twinisles.com/index.htm
http://www.reggie.net/
http://www.sushicam.com/pixelpost/index.php
http://www.japanwindow.com
http://photojapan.com/index.htm/gallery.html
http://www.japannet.de/
http://www.torekimi.com
http://roarfish.blogs.com/sashimibytes/
http://photos.agray.org/
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Glenski



Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN

PostPosted: Sun Apr 23, 2006 1:55 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

mary,
Not to sound like a wet blanket, but weren't you pretty serious about looking for work here? How can you "fit in" some job hunting on a sightseeing trip??
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PAULH



Joined: 28 Jan 2003
Posts: 4672
Location: Western Japan

PostPosted: Sun Apr 23, 2006 2:39 am    Post subject: Re: what should i see? two weeks in japan Reply with quote

maryknight wrote:
i'll arrive in tokyo on may 10th and i'll get to stay 2 weeks. i'm getting a rail pass. what do you recommend? it's a sightseeing/check out japan trip with some job search included.


If its a sightseeing trip that means you wont have a regular address and not have a mobile phone. How can employers contact you if you are moving all over the country and are not available for interviews and too busy sightseeing?

Its a 3 hour trip from Osaka to Tokyo, or half a day to get from one place to the other. add in hotel bills and you will be burning through cash, at 5,000 yen a night for hotels, or do you plan to look for a job out of a phone box?
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azarashi sushi



Joined: 23 Jan 2003
Posts: 562
Location: Shinjuku

PostPosted: Sun Apr 23, 2006 4:28 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I'm curious to know how the job hunt in Sapporo went.
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maryknight



Joined: 12 Oct 2005
Posts: 83

PostPosted: Sun Apr 23, 2006 4:57 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

thanks for the helpful information. i'm not sure how i will combine job hunting and sightseeing. as far as my expenses for the trip, i will be staying at youth hostels and possibly with people i'm meeting on hospitalityclub.org. i talked to someone last week from japan and i've read books and i've decided to rent a mobile phone at the nar airport. if you have any ideas on job hunting, please let me know. i want to have fun on the trip even if i don't find a job, but i actually think job hunting in japan sounds kind of fun. if you have ideas on schools i could go to in person or anything else i am interested to know. any constructive ideas. i am 50, which i know is old to look for a job, but i look younger. quite a bit younger. and i'll have appropriate (and easy to pack) clothes with me for job hunting. the sightseeing is secondary unless i decide that japan is not for me as far as a place to live and work. then i'll just enjoy my time as it may be my only trip to japan. but i expect to like it. as far as sapporo, i put off that trip and am taking this one. i was discouraged about getting a job in hokkaido as my first job at my age, but i am getting the hokkaido newsletter and i just applied for one and do plan to get up to hokkaido during my 2 weeks. i am just forming my thoughts as far as where to go and i really appreciate what you have said. i can read tour books and i am doing so, but i was interested in what you all had to say. i will consider information from all sources and make an itinarary for myself soon. but it is an itinerary that i will change if i find jobs that look good for me to apply for.
so, do you have job hunting ideas? i've asked that question before and gotten some negative things thrown back at me, so please try to be constructive. if you don't know of any ideas for me, that's fine. i will have a good trip anyway.
if japan doesn't work, i'm going to china or vietnam.
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