BACKPACK JAPAN

25th to 30th August 2005


1. Objective 2. Planning 3. Places & People 4. Practices & Preferences 5. In Conclusion 6. What's Next

PLANNING

Objective

My objectives of going to Japan were mentioned in the last section. It is not meant to be tour-focused holiday. It is designed to be free and easy because by doing so, chances of accomplishing the objectives are greater compared to joining a package tour which is actually more relax and enjoyable. Time is a limited resources.

Finance

Having encounter many people spending on their holiday package and purchase on credit, due to the nature of my job, i can't afford to be like them due to my unstable income. I am an unemployed everyday and when i have a job to do, it may not pay. Even if it pays, there is no CPF. But there is something i love about doing :)

No fooling around with money and i am only going to spend within my budget and my credit card is only on standby for emergency.

It was said Japan is a safe country. And i brought along all cash.

Having done some homework online, i managed to approximate a total amount required for intended purchase such as food and gifts. And i realized that i would not be able to spend on proper restorant meals in Japan with the amount of cash i will bring along.

To lighten this problem, i brought along all breakfast and supper and 12 package H20 drink just in case my water runs out. And it turned out, 6 days, i only had two drinks from the the machines, i.e. one when i was working late writing the 51 postcards and the other using the remaining coins before leaving Narita Airport =D

And needless to say, i can't afford to stay in hotel too. Well, that's where the hostels and motels come to help. One night stays in a hotel is equivalent to 3 to 4 nights stay in any hostels or motels! Just a place to park my luggage, bathe and sleep, the least it costs the better, in the context of this trip. I hunt them down on the net.

I am someone who sees no hurry to any holiday tour and i know i will be missing out a lot over this trip, but it is fine with me :)

Timing

This is not a concern for me. However, we only finalized the departure date on the air ticket after 2 amendments. This is possible because Realm's girlfriend has a say in Cathay Pacific ;)

In a broader sense, August in Japan is still summer time, it is approaching autumn. The weather will be similar to Singapore if not the same. What this means to me is the lightest baggage ;)

Route

It is next to impossible to plan a proper route especially for freshie backpacker landing on an entirely new place of foreign language.

First, we do not know the means of transportation well enough for us to know the time taken to travel from one place to another.

Second, since we are not targetting at the tourist spots, we do not have enough information on the places where residents frequent.

We ain't touring around but we live around Japan for 6 days :)

Document

If you are Singaporean, it is straight forward. You just have to decide whether you need a rail pass for your travelling. That's all.

If you are Malaysian, like i am, be very patient with all the hassles involved in getting your visa approved. It took me nearly 1 month.

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2_sdu.jpg

This is a more relax and enjoyable compared to backpacking.

2_schedule1.jpg

This is the original itinerary, i was too busy to think any further...

2_schedule2.jpg

This is the actual execution, note the vast difference, lol =D

2_japan_bp094.jpg

This is a JR rail pass; JR is just one train network in Japan...

2_japan_bp093.jpg

Bank account statement, letter from boss and etc are needed.