Buses in Japan. How to Cope.

 Japan, Travel  Comments Off on Buses in Japan. How to Cope.
Nov 082007
 

I’ve mentioned buses in Japan before, but I thought I would mention them again to give them a little special attention. In order to get to some out-of-the-way places, you will need to ride buses.  They can be the most intimidating of the various forms of mass transit, because they can be a bit confusing, and because many don’t have a whole lot of English support.

Here’s what you need to know.

In most places that aren’t Tokyo, you enter in the middle of the bus. But not always.

Look for these two guys: 入口 . That means entrance (iriguchi.) It’s the character for “enter,” followed by the character for “mouth.” Handy, huh? So it’s the mouth of the bus you go through to enter.

Don’t enter through the door marked 出口 (deguchi), because that’s the exit.

After you enter, you will need to do one of a few things:

  1. Pull a paper ticket with a number on it from a little machine. This is the stop number where you got on the bus. You’ll need this to figure out your fare later.  If you walk in without doing it, the driver will tell you to pick one up. (That’s why he’s talking to you! Get a ticket!) OR
  2. Tap your electronic fare card if you have one. This is much easier, but isn’t available everywhere. OR
  3. Insert your pass if you have a day pass or a multi-day pass. OR
  4. Pay a fixed amount there.

The first bus you ride in a town will be a bit confusing, but once you figure out the drill, you’ll be fine. Just get a few steps back in line and watch what the others are doing. (They already know how it works!) Then use your observational data to forge ahead!

While you’re on the bus, you need pay attention. You should either pick up a bus map, or have some other way of knowing what stop you need to get off at.

Look around: you’ll probably see a linear map of the route on the interior of the bus, with the stops marked (usually, but not always) in English. Make a note of the stops before yours, and keep an ear out for them. Of course, this advice does you no good at all if you can’t read the map. In that case, ask the driver, or just ask around.

Just don’t fall asleep.

Assuming you’ve remembered your stop, and you’re about to reach it, if you have a numbered slip of paper, now is the time to look at it, then check your number on the board by the driver’s head. That number is how much you pay in yen. Pay in exact change if at all possible.

What do you do if you don’t have exact change? Well, there’s usually a change machine right in the front of the bus, and it’s part of the whole fare-receiving unit, usually. Fares get dumped in the hopper at the top. You just dump the slip and the money in there, and it goes along a little belt so the driver can see you’ve put in the right amount. Use the change machine to break any 1000 yen notes or 500 yen or 100 yen coins.

Just don’t drop a 500 yen coin in the hopper and expect to get change. You won’t. Once it’s in the hopper, it’s in the hopper.

Ask the driver which bit is the change machine before you start putting money into things. Sometimes the driver is the change machine.

And try to ask a lot of questions before you get on the bus to make sure you know where you’re going, and which buses you need.

A little research will make it a lot easier.

Another Big Day in Kyoto

 Japan, Photos, Travel  Comments Off on Another Big Day in Kyoto
Oct 282007
 

Another busy day. Not as good as yesterday, but yesterday was hard to beat.

I started off my day by doing laundry at 7:30 a.m. Doing laundry in Japan is kind of handy. I say “kind of” because it has its limits. I’ve noticed that all of the coin-operated washers that I have come across have the detergent built-in, so I don’t have to add any. But they do a really lousy job of cleaning my clothes. So while it’s handy, it’s only handy if I don’t get my clothes dirty.

After that, more free breakfast, then the lady at the desk hooked me up with a big box to send my stuff home in for 300 yen.

I set off for Kamigamo Shrine, in the far Northern part of Kyoto. It’s a kind of a pain in the butt to get to. First, I took the subway all the way to Kitaoji, then I went to the bus station there, then waited 40 minutes for a bus.

When I finally got on the bus, it didn’t stop where the map says it does, and I wound up someplace entirely different.

But the driver helped me and let me know when to get off.

Pro Tip: Ask the bus driver if you don’t know where your stop is. They’re usually great about helping you out, even if you know a bare minimum of Japanese.

I left the hotel at 10:45 a.m., and only got to the shrine at 12:20 p.m., so that was a bit of a bummer.

Kyoto is a pretty cool city, but it can be a pain to get around. Taxis would probably be faster, and after switching train lines so much, the price doesn’t look so bad in comparison. It’s a time vs. money balancing act.

Another thing to keep in mind about visiting shrines on a Sunday– they’re usually packed with people doing stuff like getting married. It’s another double-edged sword, because I don’t want to interfere, but it’s cool to watch, and it also sometimes means parts of the shrines are closed.

This time, there was a wedding and a huge craft fair taking place at the shrine. Both were interesting to check out. The craft fair was cool because people were selling actual things they made with their own hands and skill, and not just stuff in a box from China like you might see at a lot of flea markets. There was also more shichi-go-san visiting taking place, too.

Anyway, pictures!

The entrance to the grounds:

Kamigamo Shrine Entrance

As I walked towards the shrine, I saw part of the craft fair going on:

Kamigamo Shrine Craft Fair

Here’s the entrance to the shrine proper:

Kamigamo Shrine

Detail Shot:

Kamigamo Shrine Main Entrance Detail

Neat bridge in front of the gate in front of the shrine:

Kamigamo Shrine

More ema:

Kamigamo Shrine Ema

Inside the honden:

Kamigamo Shrine Proper

One last shot of the craft fair. It was pretty big:

Kamigamo Shrine Craft Fair

On to Shimogamo Shine

After some browsing, I left Kamigamo Shrine and went to Shimogamo Shrine.

I picked the two shrines based on the fact that they both looked pretty in the guidebook I picked up in Nagoya.

Powerful logic there, but it’s one way to narrow down the choices of places to visit.

Another bus ride, another long walk, and a shrine. It was also very visually appealing, very historical, and very crowded.

A torii, so we know we’re entering a shrine:

Shimogamo Shrine Entryway-- Closer up

A close-up of the lantern:

Torii Lantern detail

Some of the buildings on the grounds:

Shimogamo Shrine Grounds

Shimogamo Shrine Grounds

The honden entrance:

Shimogamo Shrine Honden Entryway

Some props for taking pictures of kids doing their shichi-go-san visits:

Shichi-Go-San Props

The Sakura Gate, or Sakuramon is stunning:

Shimogamo Shrine Sakura Gate

Coming out the other side:

Shimogamo Shrine Sakura Gate

Detail shot:

Shimogamo Shrine Sakura Gate Detail

I came across the stump of a sacred tree on the way out:

Shimogamo Shrine Sacred Tree

And another craft fair:

Shimogamo Shrine Park--Craft Fair

Then I headed out:

Shimogamo Shrine Park

Weddings, shichi-go-san, and another craft festival. I’m beginning to see a pattern here. Both shrines feel more like parks than shrines. Shimogamo has better shade trees.

I hopped a train and rode to Ponto-cho for a little stroll there. It has a very nice atmosphere, but it’s also very crowded with tourists.

Arashiyama

I went back to the hotel for a snack, and set out again for Arashiyama, but I had to hustle, because it was already 4 p.m., and the sun sets here right at 5 p.m.

Walking along the Ohi river:

Arashiyama-- Ohi River

Souvenir shops:

Arashiyama

I got to the Ohi River bridge just in time… for the sun to already have gone behind the mountain. It was still nice, though.

A view of the Ohi River Bridge:

Ohi River Bridge

Some people kayaking in the river, taken from the Ohi River Bridge:

Boaters

Crossing over to the other side:

Crossing the Ohi River Bridge

Some food stalls set up on the other side:

Arashiyama

I took a few shots from the other bank.

Here’s a shot of the bridge:

Ohi River Bridge

Another shot of the boaters:

Ohi River

More scenery:

Ohi River

Close up of the other bank:

Ohi River

See, it really is the Ohi River!

Ohi River Sign

Some of the scenery on the other side:

Arashiyama canal

Arashiyama canal

A place to crash before crossing the bridge back to the station:

A place to crash.

I strolled around for a bit, then hurried back home because my stomach was cramping. Probably something I ate, or maybe dehydration.

The pink stuff fixed me up. Don’t leave home without it, because you can’t get it here.

Tonight I’m probably going to take it easy. I might saunter to Isetan for a meal there, but I may just sit in my very hot room and sleep, too.

It turns out that they turned off the A/C yesterday. Dunno why, it’s still hot here. But I guess the calendar said, “Turn the heater on,” so now the heater is on. So I had to open the window so I don’t suffocate.

I’m wiped out now.

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