Getting started (I)

DOROTHY: Aunt Em!  Aunt Em!

Hello ‘Ozzis’ (hope anyone of you is Australian)
Well, here starts a series of pretty useful posts, even though some of you may find them a bit boring… 
Toto is stressing himself a bit with the preparations for the trip to Japan. So, during the next weeks I’ll be talking about some stuff you should take into consideration before going to Japan.
Today, I’ll begin with the basics: gathering information and looking for cheap flights!
Dorothy should never have begun her journey without getting brochures about Oz…Nobody wants to finish in a creepy dungeon, with horrible witches doing weird stuff to you, isn’t it? Or maybe you do (now that I think about it, it may sound tempting…). Anyway, I’m changing of subject here!
So let’s go back to business: The first thing to do in order to prepare our trip, is to look for tourist information offices in our country, and buying some travel guides. Since the Vulcanus program takes a whole year, I decided to buy a couple of guides, one of Japan in general, and the other one about Tokyo and Kyoto. The one about Japan in general is La guide bleu de Japan, from Hachette editors (yep, it’s a French guide guys!). The one about Tokyo and Kyoto is the Guía viva, from Anaya Touring Club (and surprise, this one is Spanish! Too much time spent in different countries, I guess). I have read both of them (ok, maybe not in deep detail, but quite well!). Anyway, there are loads of good guides (Lonely Planet, Guide du routard, etc…), and it’s better to take a quick look to different ones. Depending on the kind of trip you have in mind, you may have different preferences.
Since I am also planning on communicating with the ‘natives’ (hey, people from Oz have feelings, didn’t you know that?), I thought it would be good idea to buy a small book about customs and etiquette. I know that home rules don’t apply everywhere in the world, so it’s better to be aware and not make silly mistakes. I bought the Culture Smart! Guide of Japan (Kuperard editors) (which is in English, I’m afraid…Now you know why learning different languages at school comes handy!). If you want, I can post later on something about Japanese etiquette. I think it’s better knowing than making a fool of himself later on, when not even  Glinda would be able to help you out!  As for addresses where you could gather some information, you should always consider checking the Japanese embassy in your country first. Here is a couple of places you could check out also:
·      Japan National Tourist Organization (JNTO): 
o 4, rue de Ventadour, 75001, Paris
o Web address: www.jnto.go.jp
o E-mail: info@tourisme-japon.fr
·      Tokyo Metropolitan Government
o  Webs: www.tourism.metro.tokyo.jp , www.yes-tokio.es
o  E-mail:taekoueda@yes-tokyo.es (Ms. Taeko Ueda in in charge of this office)
·      JTB Viajes Spain, S.A. (JJPAK)
o  C/ Principe de Vergara, 111- Duplicado, 28013 Madrid
o  Web: www.jjpak.es
o  Mail: informad@jjpak.es
I suppose there are no Wizards of Oz around you, so nobody will be planning to take a balloon to fly to Japan, is there? As with Travel Guides, there are a lot of companies which fly to Japan…but I presume here the main issue is money, not ‘your idea of the trip’. The earlier you buy your ticket, the cheaper. The best fares are always when buying like 6 months in advance (I have some friends that fly with Air France for something like 450€ i/v, which is pretty cool). If you have the chance to choose a company, I would say that it’s better to fly with Air France or Bristish Airways, since they have the best catering offers (and believe me, when you’re in a plane for something like 13 hours, THAT counts a lot!). If not, you should check in Finnair, or in Air China. They have pretty good prices if you buy your ticket 3 months in advance (I saw one from Air China for 700€ i/v). As for travel search sites, I recommend you to take a look at Atrapalo(www.atrapalo.com) or at Mon nuage (www.monnuage.fr). The normally have good offers, also.
Well, I think this is enough for today. Aunt Em is calling for supper…
Enjoy!