How Much Money to Visit Japan?

somewhere in Morioka, Iwate

How much will I spend when I visit Japan? 

I heard this question many times. I think people ask me either because they're really preparing for their trip or because they're thinking if they can afford it. Lots of people want to see Japan but there's a widespread perception that this place is expensive. 

Is Japan really an expensive place to visit?

I browsed through several blogs trying to answer this question. They're almost unanimous in saying that Japan's expensive if you compare it with other East Asian countries like Korea, China and the tropical countries in the South. However, Japan's considerably cheaper if you compare with Western European countries, the US, Australia and New Zealand.

What To Do When You Lost Your Bus Pass or Train Card?

Nice Pass (Hamamatsu's Bus Pass)
New Year, New Bus Card for Me!

I don't know if my bus card was stolen or if I just unknowingly dropped it. 

Last Friday on my way home, I lost my 2-year bus pass. I don't know really know what happened. I swiped it upon entering the bus. I took a nice nap on the bus then when I woke up, I can't find my bus pass. I searched my pockets, delved into my bags, hunted around my seat but my green bus pass was nowhere to be found. I kept looking and looking until the bus arrived at the station. I was the only passenger left, still madly scrambling for my pass. The driver took pity on me and helped me search around the bus. He just then told me to get off and go to the Lost and Found department of the station.

Culture Shock in the Philippines: Fat People, Fat Cheeks and Not-So-Fat Wallets

photo credit: http://thestylesunltd.com/

I was shocked at my own culture.

I know there's really nothing shocking about this. Lots of people living abroad experience being culture-shocked at their own culture. Still, I was shocked at myself for being shocked. Shock! Shock! Shock!

I went to the Philippines for the winter vacation. This is my third time going home after I started living in Japan. I didn't experience culture shock the first two times probably because I went back too soon. It took me 16 months before this third homecoming so maybe that's why I got bewildered.

How did I get culture-shocked? Let me count the ways...

1. People are spilling all over the place

There are about 100 million Filipinos all over the world. I shouldn't be surprised if there are a gazillion of people when I got home but I was. I was overwhelmed by the number of people in the airport, on the streets, at the malls, at the spa, on buses, on trains and on just about everywhere. When I went to a government office earlier this month, there were about 10,000 people gathered in that office. How that office contained us is a mystery.

My place in the Philippines is similar to where I live in Japan. Both are on the edge of bigger cities. They're not as exciting as the big cities but not as sleepy as in the rural areas. But my once quiet hometown is no more. There used to be less children, less people and less dogs in my neighborhood. Now, my neighborhood feels smaller and suffocating with all the people and dogs and even chickens living there. Where did all the people and animals come from? In Hamamatsu, I only see crowds during the Hamamatsu festival and on fireworks Festival. Even with these big festivals, the number of people in Hamamatsu seemed irrelevant compare to the Filipinos flocking the malls daily.

Even when I visited the smaller cities in the provinces, people are still in every corner. The Philippines seem to be bursting at the seams with people. It's ironic why it doesn't feel like this in Japan. Japan has 120 million people but they must be hiding in their houses and offices.