Japanese Transportation is Not Convenient, Really

A pokemon school bus!
credits: www.nintendolife.com

Japanese public transportation is not convenient.

It is efficient, reliable and even comfortable. But, it's not convenient.

How it is so?

Let's take the buses. From the main station, they leave on time. But from the bus stops, they're usually 2-5 minutes late because of traffic. Some areas also have few buses. They only pass once in an hour. Personally, I always have to take the 7:03 bus to go to work so I can arrive at around 7:45 in school. If I miss that, I'll be late. The next bus passing by my school leaves the station at 7:50.

Then there's the famous "on-time" trains of Japan. Sure, they're almost always on time. If a delay happens, it is still certain that the train operators will do their best to keep the trains running. However, most people have to walk, ride a bicycle or drive to the train station. With my own experience, I have to walk 20-25 minutes if I need to take the train. If I live near the train station, I'd have to deal with costly rent and constant sounds of the train. Also, not all local areas in Japan are accessible by trains. In smaller cities, a private car is still the primary mode of transportation.

Unlimited Pizza at Grazie Gardens

Craving for some pizza? Satisfy your cravings with Grazie's unlimited pizza.

Okay, that sounds like a sales pitch. But really, I love Grazie so much it's a sin not to share it.

Grazie is an Italian restaurant chain. I think they have three branches in Hamamatsu- one near where I live, one near where I work and I don't know where the other one is.

The one near my apartment is where I frequently go. It's along Nakatajima Road,  south of Hamamatsu Station. It's about 20 minutes from the station by bus or car. You can take Bus No. 4 to get there.

Grazie has the usual offerings of an Italian place- pasta, pizza, salad, dessert and wine. What makes them unique is their wide variety of pizza. They have the usual kinds and some rare ones. They have curry pizza which I highly recommend you try. They have dessert pizza which resembles a crepe. They have Japanese flavored pizza. Take note that the pizza are all thin crusts.

How to Buy Eye Glasses from JINS Without Using Much Japanese

credit: JINS site on AEON MALL Fukuoka

After 2 years, I finally get to have new eyeglasses! If you're like me who needs to eyeglasses to see clearly, I bet you can understand the happiness a new pair brings. And I'm proud of myself because I bought it from a Japanese store

If you're in need of eyeglasses and don't know how to speak in Japanese, fear not.  You can still have the dazzling vision you wanted without using much Japanese.

I'll be recommending Jins because that's where I bought my eyeglasses. Also, most of my students got their glasses from Jins. It's a chain that can be found all over Japan. Their eyeglasses are affordable compared  to other stores. In Hamamatsu, there's a Jins store in the Station.