Japan

Old Feb 2nd 2017, 4:06 am
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Default Japan

Morning folks,

Waiting for next year's school calendar to check dates with the Mrs but at the moment Japan is winning at the next destination of choice.....and let's face it, it's not really much of a Sand Pit without me asking for holiday advice and experiences.

I've always wanted to go but caught up with Joanna Lumley's show on Japan and that got the better half totally hooked as well.

So, Bahtat should be useful here, but who else?

I'm thinking a couple of weeks which may look roughly like this:

Tokyo few days
Bullet train
Kyoto
Bullet train
Hiroshima
Bullet train
Tokyo

Anything else worth really going to see or do?
I'm quite excited about the Bullet Train.

We've been recommended an island or two, but not looked into them at all yet.

Anyone been recently?
Hotel recommendations etc?

Any help much appreciated, you lot never let me down and when I know more for certain I'll go posting in the other bit of the forum.

Arigatou
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Old Feb 2nd 2017, 4:31 am
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Default Re: Japan

I haven't been to Japan since circa 1994 but what I remember is that Kyoto was where the historic stuff is and it's beautiful. Tokyo was flattened in the war so it's ugly but quite lively. Japanese culture has a reputation for being formal and you see that manifest itself in people's relationships all around you (not a bad thing, just interesting to observe).

Japanese food can be fantastic, both their stuff and their versions of French/Italian.

And it's very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very, very expensive. Although I'm sure there are ways to cut costs.
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Old Feb 2nd 2017, 4:35 am
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Default Re: Japan

A mate of mine (From Norwich) goes there every couple of years. Have a read Here and Here
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Old Feb 2nd 2017, 4:47 am
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Default Re: Japan

Thanks chaps.

Limited looks at hotels so far but prices seemed reasonable.

Expensive for food / drink type things?
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Old Feb 2nd 2017, 4:54 am
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Default Re: Japan

In retrospect maybe I should take back my comment about Japan being very expensive. It was at the time and historically it had that reputation but things may have changed. If you look at the link IKnow provided the guy had beer and meals and didn't seem particularly expensive if you're used to Dubai prices.

I wouldn't mind going to Japan again. Getting older has affected me in one way, I'm fussier about sanitary standards and cleanliness, I want reliable coffee every day and good food.

What airline are you flying and how $$$ are the tickets?
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Old Feb 2nd 2017, 5:21 am
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Default Re: Japan

A few of my mates went a few years ago on a boys holiday (random I know). Two out of the three of them were tall, one being 6'3'' and the other 6'5'' and they got treated like celebs in the street.... So if you're tall prepare to be stared at, stopped in the street and asked for selfies. They also said finding a bed long enough as a struggle.

Not a problem I am ever going to have. ;-)
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Old Feb 2nd 2017, 5:24 am
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Default Re: Japan

Originally Posted by DXBtoDOH
In retrospect maybe I should take back my comment about Japan being very expensive. It was at the time and historically it had that reputation but things may have changed. If you look at the link IKnow provided the guy had beer and meals and didn't seem particularly expensive if you're used to Dubai prices.

I wouldn't mind going to Japan again. Getting older has affected me in one way, I'm fussier about sanitary standards and cleanliness, I want reliable coffee every day and good food.

What airline are you flying and how $$$ are the tickets?
I thought the same having just gone through those food blogs. Top work and total dedication there.

Emirates want 4,500 ish
Qatar Business want 6,500 ish.

Might go with the latter purely because I'm getting really bored of Emirates.

Originally Posted by jam25mack
A few of my mates went a few years ago on a boys holiday (random I know). Two out of the three of them were tall, one being 6'3'' and the other 6'5'' and they got treated like celebs in the street.... So if you're tall prepare to be stared at, stopped in the street and asked for selfies. They also said finding a bed long enough as a struggle.

Not a problem I am ever going to have. ;-)
Interesting stuff. On a good day I'm 6'2", bad day 6'1". My Mrs is 5'10" so maybe we'll look daft together, but why not. Normally in Asia they just rub my tummy and call me buddha. I'm not even that fat....
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Old Feb 2nd 2017, 6:57 am
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Default Re: Japan

Originally Posted by Scamp
Interesting stuff. On a good day I'm 6'2", bad day 6'1". My Mrs is 5'10" so maybe we'll look daft together, but why not. Normally in Asia they just rub my tummy and call me buddha. I'm not even that fat....
They said it wasn't in a nasty way, more just a laugh and that overall they thoroughly enjoyed their trip.

Haven't ever 'really wanted' to go to Japan but wouldn't turn it down either.

Never had any desire to go out of my way to visit China though.
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Old Feb 2nd 2017, 7:28 am
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Default Re: Japan

Originally Posted by jam25mack
They said it wasn't in a nasty way, more just a laugh and that overall they thoroughly enjoyed their trip.

Haven't ever 'really wanted' to go to Japan but wouldn't turn it down either.

Never had any desire to go out of my way to visit China though.
China doesn't interest me remotely. No thanks.

Japan is more recent - it's just somewhere I would never go if was in UK. It's a deeply interesting place, they're a fascinating bunch of folk and I am always interested in war things - even if potentially disturbing and upsetting as Hiroshima appears.
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Old Feb 2nd 2017, 7:38 am
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Default Re: Japan

Don't forget what the Japs did to the Chinese and Koreans, as well as British POW in Malaysia. War is nasty. Remember that when you see Hiroshima.

Originally Posted by Scamp
China doesn't interest me remotely. No thanks.

Japan is more recent - it's just somewhere I would never go if was in UK. It's a deeply interesting place, they're a fascinating bunch of folk and I am always interested in war things - even if potentially disturbing and upsetting as Hiroshima appears.
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Old Feb 2nd 2017, 7:47 am
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Default Re: Japan

Originally Posted by DXBtoDOH
Don't forget what the Japs did to the Chinese and Koreans, as well as British POW in Malaysia. War is nasty. Remember that when you see Hiroshima.
There were potentially 250,000 people killed between Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

I'm not either side of the war in the Pacific covered themselves in glory...
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Old Feb 2nd 2017, 8:01 am
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Default Re: Japan

Originally Posted by Scamp
China doesn't interest me remotely. No thanks.

Japan is more recent - it's just somewhere I would never go if was in UK. It's a deeply interesting place, they're a fascinating bunch of folk and I am always interested in war things - even if potentially disturbing and upsetting as Hiroshima appears.
it's probably full of little stalls selling Hello Kitty stuff to tourists
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Old Feb 2nd 2017, 8:06 am
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Default Re: Japan

Originally Posted by Millhouse
it's probably full of little stalls selling Hello Kitty stuff to tourists
Probably....but what tourist places aren't now.
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Old Feb 2nd 2017, 8:08 am
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Default Re: Japan

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nanking_Massacre

The Japanese record in China, particularly Manchuria, before the war even began is devastatingly horrific.

It's too easy to criticise the dropping of the nuclear bombs but the Japanese showed no signs of surrendering and the only alternative to ending the war in the Pacific theatre was a full scale invasion of the Japanese islands. In the latter scenario, far more people would likely have been killed over a much longer period, including deaths to the allied troops. The island by island battles elsewhere in the SE Pacific had come at great cost of lives and resources to the allied forces and they knew that the Japanese mainland would be even worse.

The American leadership decided that the bombs would bring about a much swifter end to the war by delivering a psychological and physical blow that would be undeniable to the Japanese high command and thus capitulation.

Yes, yes, yes, the pictures of the bombs are horrific but the allies who made that decision already had seen evidence of what the Japanese had done across Asia and the millions of deaths. There was no easy choice to make but they selected what they thought would be the one to bring about the swiftest end to a bloody mess that was not of their making. Talking about blood on the hands of both sides is meaningless when one side just had no choice.



Originally Posted by Scamp
There were potentially 250,000 people killed between Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

I'm not either side of the war in the Pacific covered themselves in glory...
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Old Feb 2nd 2017, 8:18 am
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Default Re: Japan

Originally Posted by DXBtoDOH
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nanking_Massacre

The Japanese record in China, particularly Manchuria, before the war even began is devastatingly horrific.

It's too easy to criticise the dropping of the nuclear bombs but the Japanese showed no signs of surrendering and the only alternative to ending the war in the Pacific theatre was a full scale invasion of the Japanese islands. In the latter scenario, far more people would likely have been killed over a much longer period, including deaths to the allied troops. The island by island battles elsewhere in the SE Pacific had come at great cost of lives and resources to the allied forces and they knew that the Japanese mainland would be even worse.

The American leadership decided that the bombs would bring about a much swifter end to the war by delivering a psychological and physical blow that would be undeniable to the Japanese high command and thus capitulation.

Yes, yes, yes, the pictures of the bombs are horrific but the allies who made that decision already had seen evidence of what the Japanese had done across Asia and the millions of deaths. There was no easy choice to make but they selected what they thought would be the one to bring about the swiftest end to a bloody mess that was not of their making. Talking about blood on the hands of both sides is meaningless when one side just had no choice.
It's too easy to ignore things as well.

War doesn't produce wonderful tales that often, it produces shame. I'm sure there are plenty of Japanese folk who would refer people to the rape, torture, body part trophies and other war crimes committed by the allies just as quickly as you can justify the atom bombs as critical in bringing the war to an end.

I don't really hold much of an opinion either way or feel strongly for or against in these things. I find the subject interesting, the stories and the understanding and complex nature of it all is fascinating. I struggle to get my head around a lot of the numbers and the horrid nature of it all. That is why I want to visit Hiroshima (and a few other places over there), it's significance in WWII and the war in the Pacific and in the history of humanity. Doing that whilst berating the Japanese seems.....I dunno? Pointless?
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