Earlier I was complaining about Keio's inefficiency in issuing COE to its students and causing us a lot more trouble since we have to enter as tourist when we arrive in Japan. Well, it now seems that this is a blessing in disguise because I am able to buy a JR pass. The JR pass is an affordable way to travel around Japan only for tourists who have a "temporary vistor" stamp on their passport.
The 7-day JR pass seems quite expensive at first (US$353) but I heard that if you buy a roundtrip Shinkansen ticket to Osaka or Hokkaido (somewhere really far from Tokyo), it will already cost you $300 so $50 more seems like a really good deal. Here's the website for all those who are interested. http://www.histravelonline.com/jrpass/
If I had received the COE in time to apply for the student visa, well, then I wouldn't have been eligible to use the JR pass. I ended up buying a one-way refundable ferry ticket to S.Korea as proof that I am leaving Japan within 90 days. I read on many forums that some flights might not let you board the plane if you don't have proof of leaving the country as specified by your visa.
I'll update my plans to explore Japan with my JR pass. 2 more days to the start of my adventure in Japan! Nervous but really excited!
No comments:
Post a Comment