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buzzmario

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may i know what time in kyoto is the sun rise (ie the sky is bright ) and sun set? I am thinking of taking the sight seeing train at arashiyama at 15.07 slot but dun know it is still bright day at this time. thanks
 

buzzmario

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hi can advise base on my planning, will it be better i do away with the 7 days JR passes?

day 1 - Osaka- Kansei Airport to Kyoto HIGASHIYAMA (stay at Higashiyama)
day 2- whole day at arashiyama
day 3- Tour at Tenryu-Ji Temple/ Ohara
day 4- Osaka/ Minoo Park/ Instant Ramen Museum
day 5 - leaving Kyoto for Takayama ( staying a night here)
day 6- leaving for Hakone (suppose JR can only bring me to Odawara)
day 7- Tour Hakone and evening time leaving for tokyo Shinjuku
day 8/9 - tour tokyo
day 10- check in to Sheraton Grande Tokyo Bay Hotel (near DINSEY LAND/ sea)
day 11-12 - DINSEY LAND/ sea
day 13- from Sheraton Grande Tokyo Bay Hotel to narita airport.

Base on the above planning, i suppose i can start JR pass on day 5 ie from kyoto to takayama. So is it worth i get the JR passes or just buy ticket there, also consider i am travelling with a young kid , hence will need reserve seat.
 

fishfood

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hi guys,
this is the first time am going to see snow (yippee). hope you guys can share with me your valuable advice.
am asking if i need to get a good pair of boots or can i buy those cheap (bata; weinbenner) boots for my trip? cos it is not likely that i will get to wear the boots again leh. so it makes more economic sense to get a cheapo one? or should i get a $200 pair and keep it till my next trip?

tks,
cyc

I was about to post the same question as well. I am going to hokkaido during mid dec to see snow and would be going to niseko as part of the itinerary for the same purpose.

For me, I am thinking about wearing army boots to save money, but I am worried about how troublesome and heavy they are as I read they might trigger the airport scanning and might have to take them off for security checks or there might be occasions where I would also need to take them off frequently when I am over there at Hokkaido.

Any tips or advise? Thanks :)
 

cancer81

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okay general advice for snow/icy conditions

get shades, if u use prescriptions transitions is a good idea. the UV glare is super

shoes are fine actually. u can consider getting the "ice spikes" to strap onto your shoes.

finally, it is not snow that is slippery. it is sleet and ice that is scary. Even with the spikes, unless you got those meant for glaciers you are still at risk. avoid walking on transparent sheets of ice on the roads. For pavement, the compressed snow that is brownish or black is also very slippery.

even the so called for ice and snow shoes sold in Japan are not invulnerable.

conclusion, your normal shoes (with soles in good condition) will do nicely. walk gingerly on snow and you will be fine. :)
 

evilerniex

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hi can advise base on my planning, will it be better i do away with the 7 days JR passes?

day 1 - Osaka- Kansei Airport to Kyoto HIGASHIYAMA (stay at Higashiyama)
day 2- whole day at arashiyama
day 3- Tour at Tenryu-Ji Temple/ Ohara
day 4- Osaka/ Minoo Park/ Instant Ramen Museum
day 5 - leaving Kyoto for Takayama ( staying a night here)
day 6- leaving for Hakone (suppose JR can only bring me to Odawara)
day 7- Tour Hakone and evening time leaving for tokyo Shinjuku
day 8/9 - tour tokyo
day 10- check in to Sheraton Grande Tokyo Bay Hotel (near DINSEY LAND/ sea)
day 11-12 - DINSEY LAND/ sea
day 13- from Sheraton Grande Tokyo Bay Hotel to narita airport.

Base on the above planning, i suppose i can start JR pass on day 5 ie from kyoto to takayama. So is it worth i get the JR passes or just buy ticket there, also consider i am travelling with a young kid , hence will need reserve seat.

kyoto to takayama 9680yen
takayama to odawara 12410yen
odawara to tokyo 3640yen

total cost is still less than the 28300yen for the JR pass, unless there are other places u are going?
whether are using JR pass or not, u can still reserve ur seat. in fact, for certain trains, seat reservation is compulsory
 

evilerniex

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I was about to post the same question as well. I am going to hokkaido during mid dec to see snow and would be going to niseko as part of the itinerary for the same purpose.

For me, I am thinking about wearing army boots to save money, but I am worried about how troublesome and heavy they are as I read they might trigger the airport scanning and might have to take them off for security checks or there might be occasions where I would also need to take them off frequently when I am over there at Hokkaido.

Any tips or advise? Thanks :)

normal shoes will not be good enuf if they are not waterproof. u need ur shoes to be waterproof coz it will get wet when u walk on snow. wet+cold is going to be a disaster especially since our feet and hands are ususally the most vulnerable to cold

army boots are waterproof, but i dunno how well it can keep warm. u will probably need to get thick insulation socks to keep warm
 

cancer81

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to add on to that

there are insulating socks out there, which is made for hiking in cold conditions.

you can opt to get merino socks as well.

the other way to combat this is to put the heat packs inside your shoes which can be quite shiok lol
 

fishfood

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okay general advice for snow/icy conditions

get shades, if u use prescriptions transitions is a good idea. the UV glare is super

shoes are fine actually. u can consider getting the "ice spikes" to strap onto your shoes.

finally, it is not snow that is slippery. it is sleet and ice that is scary. Even with the spikes, unless you got those meant for glaciers you are still at risk. avoid walking on transparent sheets of ice on the roads. For pavement, the compressed snow that is brownish or black is also very slippery.

even the so called for ice and snow shoes sold in Japan are not invulnerable.

conclusion, your normal shoes (with soles in good condition) will do nicely. walk gingerly on snow and you will be fine. :)

to add on to that

there are insulating socks out there, which is made for hiking in cold conditions.

you can opt to get merino socks as well.

the other way to combat this is to put the heat packs inside your shoes which can be quite shiok lol

normal shoes will not be good enuf if they are not waterproof. u need ur shoes to be waterproof coz it will get wet when u walk on snow. wet+cold is going to be a disaster especially since our feet and hands are ususally the most vulnerable to cold

army boots are waterproof, but i dunno how well it can keep warm. u will probably need to get thick insulation socks to keep warm

Thanks for the replies :)

My main concern would be getting my feet dry since I believe getting my butt hurts is much better than getting my feet wet. I would be buying those spikes thingy so I think i should be fine.

I have already prepared some heatpads from daiso and would be buying some more over there if they are not enough. Maybe should check out those merino wool socks over the weekends.
 
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Thanks for the replies :)

My main concern would be getting my feet dry since I believe getting my butt hurts is much better than getting my feet wet. I would be buying those spikes thingy so I think i should be fine.

I have already prepared some heatpads from daiso and would be buying some more over there if they are not enough. Maybe should check out those merino wool socks over the weekends.


In dry cold conditions, ground is usually frozen and the snow dry, requires layered clothing that insulates against a wind-chill. My last trip to interlaken, I wore 3layer of clothings, 2layer of socks with a leather shoes. I hv gloves on and lip gloss. Wind is your worst enemy on a cold weather. Often, leather shoes are pretty gd insulator in wet and cold situations.

For wet cold conditions, day and night temperatures cause alternate freezing and thawing, often accompanied by wet snow and rain causing the ground to become slushy and muddy. clothing with a waterproof, wind-resistant outer layer and waterproof footwear is essential.

I hv brought some heatpads from daiso too. totally useless. Pack warm food, keep these in a flask and carry them around.
 

cancer81

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heat packs u can actually get over there in the convi stores... mostly is on offer during that time
 

hoshiyume

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just to check, will there be any concerns for buying back japanese albums? Immigration/Tax/etc.
 

xcelon

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Hi,

I'm going to Tokyo in nov with my girlfriend and her birthday happen to fall during our trip so I'm thinking of treating her to a nice restaurant that serves excellent beef.

Any recommendation? Also, any cool place to visit around Tokyo?

Thanks!
 

buzzmario

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like to ask, i will be at kyoto follow by takayam , hakone and last tokyo in dec 1 to 13. like to ask what kind of clothing should wear? i know takayama will be cold. but how about the rest? t- shirt with wind breaker and bermuda shorts can?
 

evilerniex

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like to ask, i will be at kyoto follow by takayam , hakone and last tokyo in dec 1 to 13. like to ask what kind of clothing should wear? i know takayama will be cold. but how about the rest? t- shirt with wind breaker and bermuda shorts can?

depends on ur own tolerance, it can be cool or even cold, even in the cities. i dun think bermuda shorts is good enuf... u will need at least jeans.
for takayama and hakone, u will probably need a jacket.
u can check weather forecast closer to ur travel dates as the weather nowadays quite haywire
 
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