Per usual, I wrote this a while ago and I’m only finishing it now, to explain the time gap between what I wrote initially and now. At some point I will switch to past tense.
I write this in the San Diego airport as I prepare to board my flight to LAX, which in turn will fly to Japan. This is actually my first time out of North America; it's a little hard to believe I’ve waited until my mid-thirties to do this. Then again, maybe not. It wasn’t that long ago the world seemed to be closed due to Covid. And prior to that, I was working crazy hours in San Jose, and then prior to that I was in school and therefore didn’t have a job, meaning a trip like this would be quite expensive.
I think what I’ve partially learned is there are some ways to make a trip like this cheaper. I’ll write about what I’m doing to make it cheap, which doesn’t necessarily mean you should do the same.
First, I used airline miles to book the trip. I earned a decent amount of them from flying for work and what not, as well as signing up for a credit card. So the flight was free in a sense.
Next, in Japan I stayed in capsule hotels. These cost something like $50 a night, which is quite affordable.
The food and transit in Japan are all generally pretty cheap. You can take public transit anywhere, and the cities are also very walkable (although big, so you will get some steps in!).
I loved that even in the airport, the prices are pretty reasonable. I bought a sandwich from a vending machine for $2 there (there were actually three halves, each different: tuna, beef, and egg salad).
Many of the attractions in Japan are free as well, like visiting the giant Buddha or the LDS temple. I actually went to services there on Sunday (well, at the stake center right next to the temple). That was an interesting experience as well.
The last part I wanted to mention was planning. For this trip, I just piggybacked on my coworker's Japan trip. Normally you would need to plan something like this out yourself. Or, if you paid someone to plan your trip, I think it could be quite expensive. Instead, stealing my friend's plan was free. Nick also helped me understand some of the culture there, which I might not have picked up on my own.
I recorded an episode about it here. I think I ramble about the specifics of the capsule hotel, which does take some adjustment. I think I will have to go back at some point. And also at some point, I might write more about it. Then again, it has been six months between when I started this post and the present, so perhaps not. Feel free to comment on what you think I should write next.
