I arrived in Tokyo with my girlfriend a few days ago. When she goes back home this weekend I will explore Japan on my own for the rest of the month, equipped with a Rolleiflex, a brick of Tri-X and a 21-day rail pass. The trip will be very much low-budget but I can go pretty much anywhere the JR trains go, on all the major islands. The possibilities feel slightly overwhelming and I would love to hear some suggestions on interesting places or events or things to see or do!
I never failed to get a kick out of showing the JR Rail Pass to Japanese people - it's such an incredibly good deal, nobody can believe it
😛 I don't have any personal experience with the Japanese version, but if you don't speak the language well already, I've found Lonely Planet's pocket phrasebooks to be really useful. You can probably find it at a bookstore selling English-language books in Tokyo, which shouldn't be too hard to find.
Check out Miyajima, an island near Hiroshima. The JR pass is also good for the ferry out to the island, and it has a scenic torii out in the water that's one of the iconic scenic sites of Japan. You can also climb the mountain (or take a gondola to the summit), where there may or may not be monkeys. It's easily done as a day trip from Hiroshima, although there is plenty of accommodation on the island if you want to overnight there.
Near Nagoya, there's Gero and Takayama. Gero is known for hot springs, Takayama has a sort of old traditional Japanese town thing going on, and lots of sake breweries where you can sample straight out of the barrel for a modest price. In Nagoya, if you find yourself jonesing for some Tex-Mex,
Jerry's Uno is awesome.
You should also check out a Yodobashi Camera if you haven't already. It's like being a kid in a toy store, for photographers at least.
If you find yourself hard up for accommodation, there's no rules against checking in to a love hotel by yourself. I had to resort to this the last time I was there, when my flight to Japan was delayed by several hours, stranding me in Osaka at the tail end of Obon with the trains shut down for the night (was supposed to be staying with a friend outside the city). I tried like ten regular hotels and all were full, but luckily an Africa-themed love hotel came through for me
😛 There are also all-night manga/DVD/whatever rooms you can rent out for even less, which have showers and stuff as well.
Enjoy your trip! I used to study Japanese and made a few short trips in college. Had an interview for the JET program (teaching English in public schools over there) last month, fingers crossed I find out I've been short-listed in April!
