No comments about Japan (Postcards from).

4 comments about Tokyo for Free.

1. This is definitely not your average guidebook. Rather than just a listing of the usual tourist destinations, Tokyo for Free gave me insight into what living in Japan would really be like. On earlier trips there I never had the courage to venture out on my own. But by following Ms. Pompian's advice and great directions (I don't speak any Japanese), I was able to attend a real Japanese shrine festival and even visit some fascinating little off-beat museums. I kept it with me all the time. Highly recommend it for anyone who is even thinking about going to Japan.



2. There is just not another book like this one for anyone on their way to Tokyo, Japan. All of the airlines should offer it to their Tokyo bound passengers. Susan Pompian is to be complimented indeed for all her hard work in putting all of this important information into one compact volume. I wouldn't be without it! If you happen to be Tokyo-bound now or anytime in the future, my advise to you is...buy it!



3. Amazing book..we have been 'on the road' for years and this is the easiest, best guide we have ever used in 40 years! Now we are hoping that other exciting cities will also have a guide like this...not necessarily for 'free' but organized in this manner!



4. I recently used this book to supplement my trip to Tokyo (March 2005). Of the four items I picked to see, none were still there or were lacking an essential item. Not speaking Japanese, directions in the native language did not reveal the new location. I ended up wasting many hours. The publisher last issued this book in 1998. This is a shame since this book amply describes a plethora of places, and gives careful directions to each. After my fourth failure I sadly cast the book aside. Careful directions in Tokyo are a blessing. Most of the venues in the book are not mentioned in the major travel books. The publisher and author would do well to offer an email or Web-accessible forum. The address in the book for snail mail fails to entice me to send an update.

1 comments about Pop Japan Travel: Essential Otaku Guide.

1. The title of this book is EXTREMELY misleading!
   
   I bought this with the assumption this was an Otaku travel guide to Japan. I was sorely wrong. This is a manga, with a page here and there containing blurbs on Otaku spots in Japan.
   
   I was sorely disappointed so I returned it the same day and purchased Cruising the Anime City: An Otaku Guide to Neo Tokyo. Totally worth it and yes, an Otaku guide to Japan (go figure).

1 comments about Kayak and Land Journeys in Ainu Mosir: Among the Ainu of Hokkaido.

1. I am interested about aboriginal peoples of the world and while it is not too difficult to find books pertaining to the Native Americans of North America, the Aborigines of Australia, Polynesians, and even the Inuit, I am surprised by how little there is (in print) about the native inhabitants of Japan, the Ainu. The author make mention of that fact in his introduction, and in a journalistic approach, meets, talks to and interviews quite a number of Ainu which paints a pretty good picture of how they feel, how they live and how they've been touched by Japan's modernization.
   I am not a kayak enthusiast but Guy has a way of taking the reader along in the chapters in which he describes his kayaking trips and describes nicely the creatures he sees, though his bitterness over some aspects of Japan's post-war attempts at over-modernization sometimes sours the mood (his description of miles of seacoast being built-up with "tetrapods" -a word I hadn't heard of before - huge concrete wave-breakers, is depressing) and spoils the Japan one imagines. The last part of the book was useless for me, but could be useful to the traveller to Japan as it's full of trivia regarding the kayaks he used, the kind of food available, the method of camping and outdoor cooking, otherwise I'd recommend the book to anyone interested in Hokkaido in general, the Ainu in contemporary Japan and anyone potentially interested in kayaking there.

No comments about Japan (Eyewitness Travel Guide).

1 comments about SPEAK JAPANESE TODAY -- A Little Language Goes a Long Way!.

1. This now well-worn book is evidence of its usefulness in both business and pleasure trips to Japan. The author is a master of the language and has designed a unique and wonderful "home-course" that will enable you to learn how to instantly pronounce and communicate 500 key concepts utilizing only 100 key words. The 700 key words in the book are organized for the reader's benefit, and the author delivers on his promise that you will be able to communicate in Japanese on day-to-day topics. A necessary and highly recommended book for anyone who needs to be able to communicate in Japanese. Fern Stewart Welch is the author of "Your Heart Knows the Way -- How to Follow Your Heart to a Conscious Connection with the Divine Spirit Within."

1 comments about The Other Japan: Voices Beyond the Mainstream.

1. This book is a well written, although sometimes meandering, account of the author's interviews with people in Japan who prove that Japan is not as homogenous as we might think. The only problem with the book is that it at times strays from the interviews into philosophical musings that are tedious. but the book as a whole is worth while and a must for anyone studying Japan.

No comments about Tokyo 2005/2006: Japan Regional Maps (Periplus Travel Maps).

1 comments about Utopia Guide to Japan (2nd Edition): the Gay and Lesbian Scene in 27 Cities Including Tokyo, Kyoto, and Nagoya.

1. This guide is just a cut and paste of their own web site (Or the web site is a cut and paste of the book)
   
   Free online, don't bother!

3 comments about Make a Mil-Yen: Teaching English in Japan.

1. Just returned from teaching in Japan. The truth is that finding a job is a lot more difficult than it was, say 5 years ago. But if you are the least bit interested, this is by far the best book available. Felt like I had a friend telling me the ins and outs of how to get my job. If you are really interested in the experience then go for it!



2. I taught English in Japan for about 2 years in the mid 90's. The experience was fantastic, and I made some of the best freinds of my life. Unfortunately, I read this book after the fact (after I had my job), but I certainly could have avoided some of the common pit-falls. This book really tells it like it is, and is a MUST BUY for anyone contemplating the adventure of a life-time.



3. I am currently researching teaching opportunities in Japan, and they are plentiful. While I have yet to go to Japan, reading Don Best's book has answered a lot of questions I had had (e.g. how can one afford to live in Japan?). It includes information on the English industry in Japan, qualifications for teaching, suggested preparation before leaving for Japan, finding jobs, surviving in Japan, the interview (including hints on creating a demonstration lesson), pay, work visas, and settling in.

   One concern I had was that this book was written in 1994. I wrote to two address in the book and both letters were sent back to me claiming the addresses were incorrect. I suggest checking (possibly through internet searches) addresses before writing to them. There are also a lot of informative websites to check out. If you are looking to get hired from outside Japan, look for websites of these employers: Aeon, Nova, Geos, Berlitz, and ECC.

   Overall, this book seems like an excellent place to start if you're interested in teaching English in Japan. Even if some of the information may be outdated, it answers a lot of questions that readers will have about teaching in Japan and about Japan itself.