Nippon Nomad!

HEY! Happy 74th Birthday to Sir Ian McKellen

Sat, 25 May 2013 16:46:50 -0400

shappeyknappey:

:)

Woohoo!

The Amazing Vee: The Imperial Palace and the Tokyo National Museum

Fri, 24 May 2013 19:01:29 -0400

The Amazing Vee: The Imperial Palace and the Tokyo National Museum:

amazing-vee:

When I refer to my trip to Japan, I often say that we spent three days in Tokyo, which is incorrect. In actuality, Dan and I had just two and a half days in Tokyo, and we genuinely wanted to make the most of every instant. We planned on leaving the city in the mid-afternoon, and we wanted to make…

I didn’t get to go to either of these places either. Thank god I’ve got amazing-vee to fill the gaps in my Tokyo knowledge! :D

Thank you for following me! hugs

Fri, 24 May 2013 06:41:55 -0400

You’re welcome darlin’! I dig what you do. :)

The Amazing Vee: Roppongi

Thu, 23 May 2013 19:01:53 -0400

The Amazing Vee: Roppongi:

amazing-vee:

Having seen the vast majority of the Tokyo we wanted to see, Dan and I decided, on a whim, to check out the Roppongi district. This was largely driven by a pamphlet we found indicating that Roppongi was the ‘international’ district of Tokyo.

They were overstating it. Roppongi wasn’t terrible, it…

This is great info that I can’t provide myself. I never went to Roppongi since I’m not into the night life. My completely uninformed opinion is that, unless you’re huge on clubbing and/or shady-ass foreigners, it’s probably not the place for you. But hey, I could be wrong!

The Amazing Vee: Trying to Get On The Internet in Hiroshima

Wed, 22 May 2013 19:01:37 -0400

The Amazing Vee: Trying to Get On The Internet in Hiroshima:

amazing-vee:

The Internet cafe was easy to find, and Dan and I figured it wouldn’t be too difficult to get on a computer, e-mail my friend, and check Facebook real quick. We were wrong.

I’d like to take a few moments to talk about the language barrier in Japan. In Japan, English is a compulsory topic…

Even if you’ve studied Japanese, this kind of thing happens aaaaalll the time. It’s best when both sides can just laugh it off. :P

The Amazing Vee: The Worst Lunch Ever and The Meiji Shrine

Wed, 22 May 2013 19:01:37 -0400

The Amazing Vee: The Worst Lunch Ever and The Meiji Shrine:

amazing-vee:

Near the Harajuku district is a beautiful forest that houses the Meiji Shrine. For anyone who doesn’t know, the Meiji Restoration was the period in which Japan ceased to be an isolationist nation and began to reform and modernize their society. These changes were led by Emperor and Empress Meiji,…

I laughed my balls off at the restaurant story. Most restaurants in Japan are like, orgasmically good, so my friends were just really unlucky. Usually pointing at the pictures on the menu works, I swear!

The Amazing Vee: Tokyo Day 2: Harajuku

Tue, 21 May 2013 19:01:49 -0400

The Amazing Vee: Tokyo Day 2: Harajuku :

amazing-vee:

Day 2 in Tokyo was just as insane for Dan and I as our first day, but I’m going to give you the abridged version here. This was the day that Dan and I made a lot of mistakes, which I’ll get to in a later post. Anyway, the very best thing about day 2 was our visit to Harajuku.

After our first…

The Amazing Vee: Shibuya and the World's Busiest Crosswalk

Mon, 20 May 2013 16:54:56 -0400

The Amazing Vee: Shibuya and the World's Busiest Crosswalk:

amazing-vee:

Before I came to Tokyo, when I pictured the city in my head, I pictured Shibuya. I didn’t know that I was picturing Shibuya, but I was. Train stations so busy that the employees have to shove people into the cars, the world’s busiest crosswalk, and people and lights everywhere! That’s Shibuya…

This one made me giggle. I’d forgotten about all the sulky youths hanging around Hachiko and making fun of tourists who are having their pictures taken. Those little shits are mean! It’s all part of the experience, I guess?

The Amazing Vee: The Blue Couple - The Sony Store in Ginza

Sun, 19 May 2013 19:01:47 -0400

The Amazing Vee: The Blue Couple - The Sony Store in Ginza:

amazing-vee:

After spending some time in old Tokyo, Dan and I wanted to see a little bit of new Tokyo. So we hopped back on the subway and set our sights on Ginza, a fashionable, expensive district.

Ginza was much closer to the traditional idea of a 21st century metropolis and was therefore somewhat less…

I never actually made it to Ginza, so this is informative for me as well! ^_^

The Amazing Vee: The Asakusa Temple

Sat, 18 May 2013 19:01:39 -0400

The Amazing Vee: The Asakusa Temple:

amazing-vee:

Referring to this stop in our journey as “The Asakusa Temple” is a little inaccurate. Asakusa is a district, the temple is called Sensoji, and in the same area are the Kaminari Gate and the Asakusa Shrine, as well as several other buildings, all incredible. All of these things, though, are in one…

The Amazing Vee: In Which I Learn That Many Things in Japan Are Closed on Mondays

Fri, 17 May 2013 19:01:38 -0400

The Amazing Vee: In Which I Learn That Many Things in Japan Are Closed on Mondays:

amazing-vee:

After the fish market, Dan and I decided we wanted to visit Ueno Park. Ueno Park is a large, beautiful park in Tokyo that has a few museums and a lot of cultural appeal. Dan and I hardly had what you would call a plan for the order in which we were going to explore this enormous city, so we…

The Amazing Vee: The Tsukiji Fish Market

Thu, 16 May 2013 19:01:46 -0400

The Amazing Vee: The Tsukiji Fish Market:

amazing-vee:

After the blur of an evening making our way from the airport to our hotel, Dan and I collapsed into bed almost immediately. That is, after we took a moment to wonder at the amazing Japanese contraptions in our hotel room. A massage chair? A heated mirror? A bidet? Aw, yeah - this trip was going to…

via my best friend, amazing-vee ^_^

The Amazing Vee: Day 0: Getting to Japan

Wed, 15 May 2013 19:01:51 -0400

The Amazing Vee: Day 0: Getting to Japan:

amazing-vee:

A huge downside to being an American traveler - aside from the occasional assumption that you’re a complete moron, which is accurate more often than I’d like to admit - is the prohibitive cost of just getting the hell out of your hemisphere. The total cost of our Japan trip - about $4500 - was a…

via my best friend, amazing-vee ^_^

The Amazing Vee: Let's Talk About Japan

Tue, 14 May 2013 19:01:29 -0400

The Amazing Vee: Let's Talk About Japan:

amazing-vee:

I had some vague notion last week that my ‘travels past’ blog posts should be in chronological order, starting with my first Navy port visit and ending with my recent adventures. But, I’m not going to do that because I feel like spending a little time talking about my trip to Japan.

When my…

My best friend is posting about when she came to visit me in Japan! :) If you’re looking to go to Japan as a tourist as opposed to an employee, I think you’ll find her musings helpful. Also, she is my BEST FRIEND and is super terrific and has traveled all over the world so you should def follow her!

theorderoftherederisim said: That’s what I’m doing right now actually. Majoring in english though...

Tue, 14 May 2013 18:38:44 -0400

theorderoftherederisim said: That’s what I’m doing right now actually. Majoring in english though ‘cause that’s my passion ^^ and I can do editing on the side with it

Good on you, babe! :) I majored in Anthropology myself.

Is it possible to go to Japan and teach English without a degree? What if you've finished can you do it then?

Tue, 14 May 2013 17:30:38 -0400

Hey, Anon, I’m afraid not. :( Japan won’t give you a working VISA unless you have a Bachelor’s (4-year Undergrad degree) at minimum. A Japanese employer can’t legally hire you without a working VISA, so therein lies the problem. The good news, though, is that it doesn’t matter what you major in at college — just so long as you have the degree! :)

The Amazing Vee: Traveler vs. Tourist: A Debate That Has To Stop

Mon, 06 May 2013 17:02:57 -0400

The Amazing Vee: Traveler vs. Tourist: A Debate That Has To Stop:

amazing-vee:

I poke around the travel-oriented Internet a lot, and one thing I come across frequently is the traveler’s version of us vs. them: the traveler vs. the tourist. As with many false dichotomies that arise from some human need for conflict, it’s utter bogus (IMHO). Here’s why.

First, ‘traveling’ and…

A great article by my best friend. ^_^

milky-honey: 「インベーダーインベーダー」きゃりーぱみゅぱみゅ Invader Invader by Kyary...

Sat, 04 May 2013 23:54:18 -0400

milky-honey:

「インベーダーインベーダー」きゃりーぱみゅぱみゅ

Invader Invader by Kyary Pamyu Pamyu

FULL VERSION

aloeeatsthef-kingsky: THE SECOND ONE LOOKS SO DAMN HAPPY Rats...

Sat, 04 May 2013 19:08:37 -0400

aloeeatsthef-kingsky:

THE SECOND ONE LOOKS SO DAMN HAPPY

Rats are the greatest pets ever. ^_^

Sonic and Sonic Adventures 3: Attack of the OCs

Fri, 03 May 2013 16:57:58 -0400

It’s that time of the week again: Sonic and Sonic Adventures Hour! This one was basically a veiled “eff you” to one Smackjeeves user who was always trying to pimp out his Sonic OC comic in the comments. Which, now that I think about it, was kind of petty, but oh well. He neither noticed nor cared that it was directed at him, so I guess there was no harm done. :)

(please to clicking the links for making bigger-size time!)