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dawnbuckley
Joined: 27 Nov 2007
Posts: 68
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 Posted: Sun Apr 27, 2008 7:49 am Post subject: 3 months in Sagamihara |
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Hi,
I`m off to teach for Westgate next week and apparently I`m going to be in Sagamihara. I just found out the location they`re putting me so I am now looking up where on earth this place is! I`ve done searches and it looks like the Westgate workload combined with this location is going to make my 3 months in Japan pretty bleak!
Are there many other foreigners in the area? Any bars or swimming pools? (If I can`t find the former the latter will do!) How long roughly does it take to get to Tokyo or Yokohama from there?
Thanks,
Dawn |
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Andru
Joined: 23 Apr 2006
Posts: 22
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| Posted: Sun Apr 27, 2008 11:27 am Post subject: Re: 3 months in Sagamihara |
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| dawnbuckley wrote: |
| Hi, I`m going to be in Sagamihara.... Are there many other foreigners in the area? How long roughly does it take to get to Tokyo or Yokohama from there? |
Are there many other foreigners? Jeesh! Well, it is one of the major locations of the US military presence in the Greater Tokyo/Kanagawa area. Camp Zama, Sagami Depot, and the Sagamihara US Military Housing Facility (which is where I lived as a little boy, when my Dad was stationed at a now-closed US Army hospital near Sagami-ono). Atsugi Air Base is also nearby.
It is also the location of one of the three Costco stores in the Tokyo/Kanagawa area. So if you want to mingle with a lot of foreigners - and since you probably can't get on one of the bases - become a Costco member and go there instead, especially on Saturday afternoons. The pizza is like at home!
Well, it is sort of in the sticks, but Sagamihara train station is on the Yokohama line and you can be at Yokohama station probably within a half hour. When you're there, make your way to Chinatown, where you'll see a whole lotta other foreigners, not just from China...it is a popular tourist destination.
To get to Tokyo, get off the Yokohama line at Machida and change to the Odakyu Line. You'll be in Shinjuku in less than an hour.
You could also, take the Yokohama Line northward by one stop to Hashimoto and change to the Sagami Line which will take you on a slow and sleepy trip down south to Chigasaki, one of the towns in the Shonan beach area (it's very crowded down there during the summers). And if the beauty of the ocean is not enough for you, you can take the Tokaido Line over to Fujisawa or Ofuna stations and change train lines to get to Kamakura, the location of Daibutsu, temples galore, and a whole lotta foreign tourists.
You'll have a ball. Stop worrying! When you're in Tokyo, you'll know the departure time of the last train leaving Shinjuku and will know when to start the mad rush to get there. And if you miss it? Well, it helps to know someone who lives right in Tokyo and has a big enough place so you can crash there for the night. Otherwise, you just stay up until the trains start running again, by continuing to party or hanging out/snoozing at an internet cafe. |
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azarashi sushi
Joined: 23 Jan 2003
Posts: 562
Location: Shinjuku
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| Posted: Mon Apr 28, 2008 10:32 am Post subject: |
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| Stay in Ireland. |
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rvsensei
Joined: 16 Jan 2006
Posts: 18
Location: Los Angeles,CA
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| Posted: Tue Apr 29, 2008 3:36 am Post subject: |
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| I worked for Westgate and also lived in sagahihara, will you live near JR Sagamihara station area? There are plenty of stores to do your grocery shopping. There are izakaya's everywhere and some western style bars. You always see some foreigners here and there. Its not too far to Shibuya,Shinjuku, or Yokohama where there are many more gaijins. Its not a bad location to be, what university are they sending you to? I had a good time being in sagamihara. Good luck! |
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gaijinalways
Joined: 29 Nov 2005
Posts: 2279
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| Posted: Tue Apr 29, 2008 11:17 am Post subject: |
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| I think it would depend on the uni you will be teaching at as that will determine which Sagamihara station you will be using. The one I use features not too much. As to the Costco, you really need a car to comfortably go there, unless they have added a bus service. |
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Andru
Joined: 23 Apr 2006
Posts: 22
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| Posted: Wed Apr 30, 2008 9:50 am Post subject: |
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| gaijinalways wrote: |
| As to the Costco, you really need a car to comfortably go there, unless they have added a bus service. |
Actually it's only about a 10 to 15 minute walk from Tamasakai Station. If I think I'm going to buy a lot of crap, I take a large rolling bag with me, but usually I can stuff most of it in a backpack. If you do use a rolling bag, there is an entrance to the station that has a long handicap ramp that you can use (the station is below ground level). As for your home station or any transfers along the way, get to know where the elevators or escalators are. It's like making your way to the airport with baggage, it takes some careful planning to avoid schlepping heavy bags up and down flights of stairs. And of course it's always a good idea to avoid traveling at rush hour if you've got a large bag. |
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Chris21
Joined: 30 Apr 2006
Posts: 366
Location: Japan
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| Posted: Wed Apr 30, 2008 10:28 pm Post subject: |
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| Costco also does home delivery pretty cheaply. |
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gaijinalways
Joined: 29 Nov 2005
Posts: 2279
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| Posted: Thu May 01, 2008 7:12 am Post subject: |
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I'm familar with finding ramps, sometimes I bring 'props' to school that are heavy. You're lucky if it's that close, the Costco I go to in Chiba, you need to take the bus to go there.
Is Tamasakai station in Sagamihara City? They're showing the Costco in Machida city. And of course I know they do delivery, we had most of us stuff sent last time. |
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Chris21
Joined: 30 Apr 2006
Posts: 366
Location: Japan
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| Posted: Thu May 01, 2008 10:21 am Post subject: |
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| Costco and Tamasakai station are both indeed in Machida, straddling the border with Sagamihara and Hachioji. Costco is techincally walkable from Machida-shi (Tamasakai station), Sagamihara-shi (Sagamihara/Hashimoto stations), and Hachioji-shi (Minami-Osawa station). Tamasakai is probably the closest though, at a 7-10 minute walk. |
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TokyoLiz
Joined: 16 Jan 2003
Posts: 1548
Location: Tokyo, Japan
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