Info for first-time travelers to Japan Above all, this is a school field trip. You are representing your school and your country in a foreign place. You are ambassadors! School-appropriate behavior and language is expected at all times. Courtesy for others and respect for traditions are very important! Shoes are considered extremely dirty, and the Japanese almost never wear shoes in their homes. In hotels, restaurants and even some stores, visitors are expected to remove their shoes at the door and put on slippers (provided by the establishment). It is preferred to wear socks with the slippers rather than bare feet. Socks with holes are disrespectful, so buy shiny clean socks for the trip. If you intend to wear sandals you might keep a pair of socks in your backpack. American men will not find slippers large enough, so be prepared to have your heels hanging out the back! Hotel rooms often have tatami mats (woven reed-like floor coverings). Never let your shoes, or even slippers, touch the tatami mat! Bare feet only, unless you have been wearing sandals during the day, after which you should put on clean socks. Also, do not dump your backpack, which has been on the floor of many train stations, on the tatami. Bathrooms are mostly Japanese-style (a porcelain hole in the floor) and an appropriate nickname would be “squatty potty.” In many public buildings, the last stall is a western-style toilet for handicapped people. At the track, no such luck! Many public restrooms have no toilet paper, and most have no paper towels or hand dryers. In the hotel, when you enter the bathroom, leave your bedroom slippers at the door and put on the special “toilet slippers” that are worn only around the toilet/hole in the floor. Upon exiting, switch slippers again. Bathing is a different experience. Western-style hotels are just that, and we will stay at a couple of them. Japanese-style hotels…well…you sit on a small wooden or plastic stool and soap and rinse off with a hand-held shower sprayer or dipping bowl. Don’t stand while showering. Only when you are squeaky clean from head to toe may you go to the bath, sit, and relax. Never pull the plug and drain the water, as the next person will use the same water. If you go to a public bath, such as in the Sun Rural Hotel, you will be doing this in front of other people (same sex!) and a big picture window with a gorgeous 8th floor view! Tipping is not part of the Japanese culture. Giving out business cards is appreciated. Give a small gift to anyone who helps you, or gives you directions. Gifts may range from small key-chains or pens or pins or patches or bumper stickers to T-shirts. Anything that signifies where we come from is appropriate. Count on needing 5-10 small gifts and a few T-shirts. Trading T-shirts at the track can be fun. Money: credit cards can be used at the big hotels and stores. I don’t know about debit cards. Dollars and travelers checks can be exchanged for yen at the Tokyo airport or a bank in a large city but not in Ogata. Make sure that you exchange enough at the airport to last until the next large city. It will waste at least an hour of your time to find a bank and exchange money, no matter where you are, so plan ahead. When you leave the country, exchange all yen at the airport in Tokyo. You can exchange it here, but you will lose a lot. You cannot exchange yen coins into US coins even at the airport, so spend all your pocket change before you leave. Phone cards can be purchased for international calls. I would think that internet cafes will be common, but computers with English keyboards not so common! Buy a phone card and call your dear parents! We should set up a phone tree/email list among parents for general info about the trip. Ned & Amanda (I think) will have iPhones with internet access. Do not bring a suitcase, even one with wheels. Use an internal frame backpack, the kind backpackers use. You will need both hands free to help move boxes. As we get on and off trains, and climb stairs in the train stations, and sprint to catch the next train, it will be much easier to have the backpack. Try to borrow one if possible. Don’t get an external frame pack, they get mangled when traveling. We have a special deal from IMU Outfitters (855-1795) for $33.60 for the duration of the trip. They are open M-F 12-6, Sat 10-12, and Sun 12-4. If you need one, you should go in rather soon to reserve it! Don’t wait until the day before you need to pack because they may all be rented! Also bring a smaller backpack to use as a daypack. Your favorite electronics will not operate the same in Japan. The electricity is 50 Hz and our electrical chargers will not keep cell phones/iPods charged. Batteries work, of course. If you must have your electronics, then get an adapter. Don’t even bring your cell phone. This means that you will have no way to tell time. BUY A WATCH! In a city, you will often be given a meeting time and everyone is expected to be on time. Do not make the group wait for you…pay attention to the time! It is absolutely imperative that you not make the group miss a train because you don’t watch the time! Everyone who rides a bike must wear a helmet…no exceptions! Mechanics too! In Japan they drive on the left side of the road, and you must be very careful to remember that! Watch out for those right-hand turns! It is a 7-mile ride from the hotel to the track. Make 4 copies of your passport. I must carry 2 copies of each (one for me and one to leave with the hotels). Leave one with your parents. Keep one with you but not in the same place as your original. It is a very serious matter to lose your passport! Have a system to keep track of your passport and rail pass. Maybe it should always be in the same pocket, or have a passport wallet. Don’t leave it in your daypack which may be left behind. Don’t leave it loose in a pocket that isn’t zipped. Losing your rail pass would be your worst day ever…they cannot be replaced in Japan and you will be paying several hundred $ to buy single tickets to stay with the group. The only other option would be to put you on the first flight home! Pack all liquids (shampoo etc.) in Ziploc bags for the flight, and even while traveling in Japan. For the Mt. Fuji hike, pack your passport & rail pass in a Ziploc bag! In the airport, when we are dealing with customs officials, do not say that we have racing bicycles in our boxes! There is a stiff tax for that, on the way into the country and also on the way out. We have “sports equipment.” Let me deal with the officials on this. Anywhere else, feel free to tell everyone who we are and why we are there! Money, money, money… Many of our team expenses must be paid in cash. I take out a large cash advance from our team money and must account for every yen spent. I will not get reimbursed without receipts. If you ever see me not get a receipt, speak up and remind me! Each of you should pay $175 for the second week of the rail pass. Checks can be made out to the Solar Racing Team. Some of you still owe for jerseys and T-shirts. I usually take ~$500 and have some left, but I don’t eat as much as a teenager! I don’t know how much food prices have increased in the last 2 years. Vending machines are everywhere and sodas cost ~$1.50. Take a water bottle and avoid the vending machines! The projected expenses are $13,000. We have $5,000. Those of you who have not fundraised yet must take over now and do your share. There are 3 of us who have earned the “you’ve done your share” award, and that would be Ned, Ian, and myself. A couple others have earned “honorable mention” and several have earned “get in gear, now it’s your turn.” We have the following fundraisers scheduled: June 19 Wal-Mart hot dog stand June 20 Taste of Bloomington June 26 Wal-Mart hot dog stand July 3 Wal-Mart hot dog stand July 10 Wal-Mart hot dog stand July 18 RAIN rest stop I will be out of town June 7-July 2. I’ll be the adult-in-charge of the hot dog stands in July. Someone else can do it in June! I’ll be back for the 4th of July Parade also. Packing List for Japan Bring for sure: passport and Xerox copy riding gear (jersey, shorts, shoes, helmet, gloves, elbow pads!!, Camel-back) (may be shipped w/bikes) nice shirt & tie or dress for awards water bottles swim suit sunscreen/hat/sunglasses clothes (about 4 or 5 days worth, then do laundry) toiletries towel spending money for souvenirs gifts for nice people smaller backpack or belt pack Ziplocs Recommended: camera/film book to read (long plane/train rides) cards insect repellant (1 bottle for the group?) For the Mt. Fuji trip: You must have the proper clothing and protection to climb Mt. Fuji. I will not allow an unprepared student to go with our group! Night temp can be about 30°, and daytime temp could be 30-90°. The weather could be gorgeous or nasty! After the trip we’ll ship our boots and heavy clothes to Ogata. small backpack for overnight stuff hiking boots or tennis shoes with gaiters long pants long underwear short-sleeved shirt (not cotton, a jersey is good!) long-sleeved shirt (not cotton) wool sweater or fleece or jacket rain suit head-to-toe (cheapo poncho is not enough!) hat and sunscreen and sunglasses warm hat and gloves water bottles (water costs ~$4 per bottle on the mountain) flashlight Ziploc bags to keep everything dry