Traveling to Japan in 2 years..what to expect?

Post Reply New Topic

Hi! I didn’t know where to put this topic, but I have questions as this is my very first trip outside the US and on my own. I will be visiting Osaka, Japan for 1 week (direct flight) in 2021. I have a friend that I have disclosed my Autism to whom I’ll be visiting in Osaka. Has anyone on the spectrum traveled to a foreign country? What should I expect with being Autistic? I am packing my noise cancelling headphones for the long flight and for noisy places while there in Japan.
My family is both happy for me and as well nervous for me. I want to enjoy myself as I can speak Japanese at an intermediate level and carry on conversations.
Any tips would help me!:)

As someone who has traveled outside the USA on multiple occasions, and will be visiting Japan (not Osaka though) for the first time in a little over a month, there are some things you should definitely know before traveling overseas.

1) Try your best to avoid layovers in Canada. When I traveled to China a few years ago I had to go through customs twice, once in Canada and once when I arrived in China. This involved having to re-check my bags, which could've resulted in them getting lost.

2) I cannot stress this enough, get to the airport a good 3 hours before your flight is supposed to take off. The passport-check lines can take hours sometimes. I almost missed a flight out of France earlier this year because I was stuck in the passport-check line for over an hour.

3) bring A LOT of things to occupy you. You will be traveling for 15-17 hours to get to Japan depending on the amount and length of any layovers that may be present in your journey. Lots of music on your phone/ipod/tablet, a computer with lots of games (that don't require internet), books, handheld consoles like a nintendo 3DS or Switch, stuff to sketch/draw with, etc.

4) I don't know if you've flown before, but planes are loud. You are smart to bring noise-cancelling headphones. Also, people can get cranky when stuck in a plane for hours upon hours. Expect to have to deal with annoyed/entitled NTs during your flight, especially since you will probably be sitting next to strangers if you are traveling alone.

I hope this helps, if I think of anything else I'll post it here for you.

I have spent a good deal of time in Osaka actually. I found that people were so distracted by the fact that I was a foreigner that my other odities didn't really bother them. They will be appreciative that you speak some Japanese, as most regular people will not be confident in their English. Osaka also has a different dialect (Kansai-ben) than the Tokyo dialect usually taught in official text books though. A lot of basic words, from "to be" to even "I" or "not" are different in this dialect. I personally really like this, but it is a thing that helps to be prepared for.

Some quick Kainsaiben translations:

Textbook Japanese = Kansaiben = English
-teiru = -tennen = -ing
-nai = -hen = not _
watashi = uchi = I
iru (ex. inu ga iru) = oru (ex. inu ga oru) = to be (ex. there is a dog)
ne? = na? = isn't it?

One important thing to keep in mind in Japan is that CASH is the main form of payment. Few places take cards and almost nowhere takes traveler's checks or US dollars. Bring yen with you, and if you need more while you are there, believe it or not, a post office can help you out. They have their own bank, and are often better at accessing foreign accounts than normal banks.

A couple specific things to avoid, that Americans tend to do unwittingly:
- If you see a threshold that pokes up from the ground, step over it, not on it.
- Don't stick chopsticks directly up in your food or touch two sets of chopsticks together (this relates to funeral traditions and is thought to be super bad luck)

Osaka is great, one of my favorite places in the word. I will say that it is maybe the loudest, flashiest, and (depending on the part you visit) smelliest places in Japan. It's part of the charm of the area, but if you are sensitive to those things, you may want to prepare in advance. There are open air markets where people will come up to you to offer free tissue paper packets with ads on them. There are host and hostess clubs where attractive people will offer to hang out with you for a fee. There are rows upon rows of street food alleys where you can feast on balls of octopus (takoyaki), cabbage pancakes (okonomiyaki), grilled chicken (yakitori), and much much more. You get the idea. People in Osaka are also famously the loudest talkers in Japan. I'd say about normal to medium loud US level.

Also, there's the "finger gun" game you can play with strangers:


In any case, I won't wax poetic about what you need to do in Osaka. I figure you have plenty of options for this kind of advice online. I'll just say this though: Osaka is right in the heart of the Kansai area and it is also a transportation hub. So day trips to Kyoto, Nara, and Kobe are super easy to do, especially if you get a foreign visitor JR rail pass for your trip.

Aaw, I'm so jealous of everyone on this thread! I wanna go to Japan, too!

Since you speak the language, I assume you've studied some culture customs too, no? Is it the trip there (and back) what you need advice for or the time in Japan? Or both? Would give us a better idea of what kind of advice you need.

Japan is one of my special interest countries. I would love to go there for the Olympic Games next year. I would love to see a tennis match and visit a cat café.

I have traveled to Germany twice. That is my maternal ancestry. The first time, I was ten years old and the second time was after I graduated from high school. I loved it the first time. The second time, not so much.

I have a lot of travel dreams, but don't yet know how to manage the logistics. I hope that, in the years to come, I can figure those things out and make my dreams come true.

Wow!! Thanks for all the insights and replies back! As for what I want to know is basically what others have explained: What to prepare for as an American Autistic traveling abroad..Noise levels, sensory stuff, anything to where I won’t embarrass myself or my buddy that I’ll be staying with while there. I am still researching about Osaka. Since I’ll be staying with a friend is there any other important stuff I should let her know about. I plan to tell her about me needing to wear headphones while there.
I am seriously looking forward to this special trip!:)

Interesting, I may be in Japan around the same time. Although more likely to be in Tokyo.
As i want to go to do Judo and other martial arts.

I have read a fair bit about travelling to Japan, and it sounds very autism friendly in that,
the Japanese culture is extremely different to western culture, and the Japanese mindset and morals
are quiet different, that they see most foreigners as completely different.

This generally works in your favour, as if the Japanese people think that westerners are strange compared to themselves. Then they do not notice how strange you are compared to the other westerners. As all westerners are equally strange and have poor skills to speak in Japanese.

Japan sounds really interesting, in that their society is better ordered than general western societies.
Japanese people are known to be very polite and friendly, and often are generous and offer good hospitality.

There are some cultural norms that you may need to get used to, for example. it is rude to eat when walking.

It is rude to look someone in the eye (this may not be a problem for people with ASD lol).
Some places are out of bounds for Gaijin.
Tattoo's generally signify association with drugs and criminality and are not considered by the old school or gen pop as cool (although this perception may be changing). some places may even refuse you access if you have tattoo's. beaches and baths for example. Tattoos' are also associated with the Yakuza, the Japanese Criminal Class / Organised Crime.
In more traditional areas, keep tattoo's covered up.
Polite to take presents to your friends or teachers.
Rude to touch someones sword / belt (in traditional dress / martial art setting) (as both are thought to contain a persons spirit or ki energy or essence. So its like touching someones soul).
remove shoes before entering building put slippers on
alt slippers to go to toilet
alt slippers to go to recreational bath (shower before going for a communal spa / bath)
communal baths are sometimes same sex, sometimes mixed, and traditionally are taken naked!
old people are revered not ignored.
don't tip at meals, its offensive
don't try help poor people as it embaresses them
if you have a cold or small sickness, you need to wear a face mask or its offensive to spread germs
be aware that in Japan, some pervy men like groping woman on underground (not sure how popular that is though)

one interesting aspect of japanese culture is that your behaviour when your drunk isn't held against you in your normal life. The Japanese are notorious for working super hard, having high expectations of delivering high quality services and products to the extent of being perfectionists by nature, and so, when Japanese people go out to drink
they are more forgiving when people are naughty when drunk, as they use the drinking as a way to let off steam

but also - coming from a society that is heavily influenced by Shito / Taoist / Buddhism, they see the drunk person and their sober counter part, as two separate people. Apparently, it is not uncommon to see extremely drunk business men wondering around half naked (or even fully naked) on the underground in the middle of the week. Also, the Japanese being known for their extremeness, like to drink hard as they do everything else, work, fight.

Some of the Japanese also still hold traditional warrior philosophical moral values known as the Samurai or Bushido code. This, i feel is very noble, and promotes Justice, courage, mercy, politeness, honesty, honour, loyalty, moral character / self control. Not everyone subscribes to this.

This following one may be a problem, but as we are foreigners we may get away with not being good at this:
Non-verbal communication is very important and complex. Be aware of your facial expression, tone of voice and posture when talking


I recommend the following books.

Book: The Japanese Mind

lonely planet japan

Also, as you are going after the 2020 Olympics, quiet a lot of the attractions may still be there.
Japan has the most theme parks in the world, for a country and a new Mario Land is opening for the Olympics. Awesome!

If you are hypersensitive to sound, it may be worth you investing in some ear plugs for sleeping or even some Bose sleepbuds, which are their new noise cancelling ear plugs.

It is that or get an audiologist to make you some custom fit ear plugs that block out all sound designed for sleep.
I suggest this as you don't know what the quality of the accommodation will be, Japanese main cities are notorious for being densely populated, and housing small in size with high rents. so at night, you may not find yourself somewhere that is silent. Audiologists can fit some custom ear plugs for fairly reasonable price. £80 or $100

http://www.eastudies.org/guide_kansaiben.html

In all honesty, I prefer the Japanese mindset towards life rather than Western. I haven’t been able to actually study Kansaiben as of lately, and it wouldn’t hurt to do so!:)
I have several Japanese friends here in my hometown who are also kind enough to give me advice while still saving up for the trip. I plan to go in Autumn of 2021 since that’s my favorite time of year!:) I hope I don’t gain too much weight from all of the really neat foods! I also can’t wait to try out their vending machines for Canned Coffee!!:)
And please continue to share more tips if anyone has any! As for martial arts, growing up my father studied martial arts and I’ve always been interested since watching him with his training as a kid....

If you all like martial arts, the second week of March is the big annual Osaka sumo tournament. It's a lot of fun to watch, and it's easy for foreigners to buy tickets in advance online:
http://sumo.or.jp/En/

Because of all the tensions with North Korea I'd be nervous to travel to any part of Asia right now.

Actually I'd be nervous to travel at all on a plane. Or just plain scared, no pun intended. My mother has flown lots of times and doesn't mind it at all, but I know I wouldn't be that lucky. I'm too sensitive to all the major changes or interruptions to a routine. But I only had one meltdown when my mom and I went on a short trip by car for two days last month.

There's also currently an outbreak of rubella in Japan, so make sure you've had all your vaccinations. Rubella is really dangerous to unborn babies and women aren't supposed to be vaccinated for it while pregnant.

One thing about Japan that's odd is that they really have a problem with tattoos. They have signs of mean-looking anime men covered in tattoos being banned from places where a lot of skin is shown like swimming pools and hot springs, because only dangerous thugs would wear tattoos. Some people have wear something to cover their tattoos up so they can go in such places.

Osaka is a wonderful city and you will have fun. The Japanese are gracious and hospitable towards their guests. You should find a way to tell your friend about your special needs. Give them a signal when you are feeling overloaded and let them find a way to shield you from the problem.

Osaka is a big city, which is noisy, dirty, crowded and with absolutely fabulous street food. So you may need to acclimate yourself to the surroundings. You are lucky to have a guide and when you are stressed, just let them know.

One trick that help me in Japan was acting embarrassed, smiling and laughing at myself when I made mistakes. The Japanese are no confrontational to foreigners when you make an honest mistake. Acting all embarrassed got me out of a bunch of awkward situations.

Have fun.

Sure. Sumo big part of Japanese Culture. Sumo is the oldest Japanese martial art and intrinsically part of the Japanese (and Chinese) history.

They say that the Sumo were the children of the Gods, and that Sumo matches are a big part of Japanese traditional culture. Interestingly enough, Sumo has a lot in common with Judo and Traditional Japanese Ju Jitsu.

Osaka as it happens is the home to the Kodokan Osaka branch, which is part of the original Tokyo Kodokan, founded by Professor Jigoro Kano (the founder of Kodokan Judo).

The Osaka centre is marketed as their International Judo Centre and geared towards teaching foreign nationals.
Although i believe the Tokyo Kodokan is generally more popular, perhaps due to its size, history and location.
What you will be assure of is that you will receive top quality and authentic technical Kodokan Judo instruction from either school by top experienced teachers.

Kodokan Judo Institute Osaka

I would go today if i had enough money to sustain myself and pay my rent back home.

Japan of course is the home to many martial arts, so there is a wide variety of martial art experiences and knowledge to gain from this interesting country. Japan after all created a great deal of the techniques over many hundreds if not thousands of years. Japan originally being a warrior nation.

Japan is home to a wide and diverse range of martial arts, traditional and modern.
From spiritually focused arts such as Aikido,
traditional arts that keep their heritage alive such as kenjutsu, kendo, ju jitsu, kyudo, jodo, shorinji kempo, karate.
To contemporary full contact combat sports such as Shooto, MMA, Gracie Jiu Jitsu.
And where better to study or start to study than in such a cool country!

On another note, if you like night clubs. Japan also is supposed to have a really good night club and music scene.
Interestingly enough even though i suffer from hypersensitivity to sound, when intoxicated after drinking a few alcoholic beverages, my sensitivity to sound reduces or is masked with the music.

In Tokyo, Roppongi is known as the area for partying and is home to some world class massive night clubs that even includes one that has an artificial beach... lol
not for everyone though.

You're planning your trip 2 years early?! Well that should give you tons of time to prepare. Bon Voyage in 2021!

yere for sure. good planning skills there.
Personally, i have been planning or should i say wanting to go to Japan since i started karate when i was 11.
After watching Karate kid, and the classic 80s ninja B-movies.

And after training in one or two martial arts, and reading. I still want to go.