Doctor Q in Japan

[Doctor Q]

It's been almost a year since Mrs. Q and I took our big trip to Japan, and we still remember every detail, talk about how much fun we had, show off our photos to anyone who foolishly wanders too close, and hope to go back again when we can afford it.

We're now on various travel site mailing lists so we can watch for bargain airfare and/or hotel deals. We wouldn't want to take a formal tour, since we have our opinions about the cities we'd like to go back to (Kyoto being #1) and which new cities we'd like to visit. And now that we have some friends in Japan, we'd certainly have to visit them again!

Mrs. Q is making still working on her scrapbook of temple admission tickets (they have great pictures on them) and other souvenirs we collected. I made some huge photoshop mosaics of our best photos and had them framed. We have one on the wall in the living room and one in the family room.

I didn't think I'd ever mentioned in the forums that we had a long-time goal of going to Japan, until the trip was imminent, but tonight, while looking through archived MacRumors threads from years past, I came upon this post about it from 2003. I guess the story leaked earlier than I thought!

 

[Chip NoVaMac]

It's been almost a year since Mrs. Q and I took our big trip to Japan, and we still remember every detail, talk about how much fun we had, show off our photos to anyone who foolishly wanders too close, and hope to go back again when we can afford it.

We're now on various travel site mailing lists so we can watch for bargain airfare and/or hotel deals. We wouldn't want to take a formal tour, since we have our opinions about the cities we'd like to go back to (Kyoto being #1) and which new cities we'd like to visit. And now that we have some friends in Japan, we'd certainly have to visit them again!

Mrs. Q is making still working on her scrapbook of temple admission tickets (they have great pictures on them) and other souvenirs we collected. I made some huge photoshop mosaics of our best photos and had them framed. We have one on the wall in the living room and one in the family room.

I didn't think I'd ever mentioned in the forums that we had a long-time goal of going to Japan, until the trip was imminent, but tonight, while looking through archived MacRumors threads from years past, I came upon this post about it from 2003. I guess the story leaked earlier than I thought!

Much of this I understand with my REK/LON trip this year.

 

[dextertangocci]

Thanks for the good wishes everyone. I have two specific questions to ask.

1. If I get carried away taking photos, even though I have enough RAM to take almost a hundred a day, where might I find a store that will transfer them from a Compact Flash card to a CD for a small fee? Will Apple Stores do that? Where else?

2. What should I do to save money when phoning home now and then to say hi to the folks back home in California and ask them how many earthquakes we missed? Should I buy a pre-paid calling card here before I leave? Should I buy a phone card when I arrive? Are their other choices, e.g., plans or services to sign up for? Is there an independent website that evaluates and rates choices and brands?

Note that I won't be using iChat AV or VOIP because we aren't taking any electronics other than the camera and my electric razor. No PDA, no iBook or PowerBook, not even an iPod nano. We are intentionally packing very light to make it easiest to travel. It will feel a little odd to be offline most of the time (except when I sneak online from a computer in a hotel lobby or Apple Store), but that's part of what makes it a vacation, and I don't want to spend my time talking to my MR friends when I could be out there seeing the sights!

Now I'm worried.

Yes, we've noticed the prices. That's why we saved up for this trip for five years, forgoing other expensive trips, eating dog food for dinner, and rolling drunks for spare cash. We won't stay in the fanciest hotels (I hope I don't hit both elbows at once on opposite walls of our hotel rooms), and our Rail Passes will help with transportation, so we hope our budget will hold up.

I appreciate your advice. We knew it was impossible to see half of what we wanted to see (which might have been 20 cities), so we planned a few days each in the big cities and side trips to some of the others. If it was possible (see $ issue above), I'd stay for twice as long! Instead, all we can do is promise ourselves that this is our first trip to Japan.

I own a Pachinko machine and all the kids in the family head straight for it when they visit. It's very noisy, so I can't imagine how loud it must be in a room full of them.

Which brings up another question. Where will we be likely to find Pachinko being played? Everywhere there's nightlife? Or do we need to look for them in specific areas of specific cities, such as Shibuya in Tokyo?

It might be more like 6.023x10^23.

Have a great trip

BTW, why don't you use your iPod to store photos from your camara? Just buy the camera connector if you don't have one already

 

[Doctor Q]

Have a great trip

BTW, why don't you use your iPod to store photos from your camara? Just buy the camera connector if you don't have one already

The trip is already over (this is an old thread), but your advice is good. As it turned out, I didn't have to carry any extra cables or electronics. I took lots of camera RAM and when it finally filled up I went to a Kinkos and burned a couple of CDs.

 

[dextertangocci]

The trip is already over (this is an old thread), but your advice is good. As it turned out, I didn't have to carry any extra cables or electronics. I took lots of camera RAM and when it finally filled up I went to a Kinkos and burned a couple of CDs.

Oops! Didn't see the date fo the thread

 

[Doctor Q]

Today it's been one year since Mrs. Q and I had our first full day as tourists in Japan. It's still the best vacation we ever had.

I'm a bit sad that I'm not there again this year. <--- see?

Luckily, I can go to a Japanese Food Festival, coming up here in Los Angeles, and pretend I am in Japan!

Exhibitors will be representing their finest products and services to assist you enjoy Japanese food and culture more than ever before.

The most astonishing demonstration at the festival is filleting a huge tuna approximately two meters in length. Only highly trained and thoroughly experienced sushi chefs do this job. Do not miss this opportunity to take in those sushi chefs as they adeptly handle their own large knives in filleting a tuna and work their magic at the demonstration. You may be enthralled by their performance at this demonstration, the sushi and sashimi booths.

Sounds good to me!