Jappan.

I make no apologies for the terrible puns that get me through the day, but that one's especially awful. Shock horror: here's some actual, useful, travel tips instead of flowery rambling.

I said before that Japan's not as scary to navigate as a first-timer might believe. Having said that it can still be pretty overwhelming - most restaurants, even in big cities, won't have English-language menus, there's no road names anywhere, and the language itself doesn't have any relation to anything a European might recognise from other Latin/Germanic-influenced languages. None of your Spanglish-fake-word stumbling here.

So, here's a few apps that are super useful. There's loads of others available, I only highlight these ones because I've used them first hand, the design appeals and also... they're free.

Memrise

Amazing language app, great for picking up some basic Japanese quickly. It's broken down into little stages based around topics - basic sounds, introducing yourself, food, etc. Each section takes max 30-45 minutes so doing it daily doesn't feel like a time-killer, and you can always do little revision tests later on. The only downsides I've found are that it feels like there's a heavy focus on reading rather than speaking, but I guess it all comes hand in hand and I'll always want to recognise the odd word on a street sign (coffee, ramen). Some of the lessons also sometimes feel a bit out of place in the order of things, where 90% of the stages feel like a logical progression. I learned a whole list of convoluted variations of 'I am happy', 'I am sad', etc (of which I can still only remember the full sentence for 'I am sick'). But I've still not learned to say where I'm from. But, it's been really useful so far for learning a bit more than hi/please/thanks.

Maps.Me

Brilliant, brilliant navigation app, especially if you're doing a lot of walking. The main bonus is it works totally offline, no data needed. All smart phones still respond to GPS even when you aren't on a network, so no roaming charges trying to tap into Google Maps or whatever. I think you need to centre the map on roughly the area you'll be in while you're online (or at least I have been for paranoia's sake), but then you're away. Highlights main tourist sights, supermarkets, restaurants as well. I've already used it for two days of exploring in different towns and it worked a treat.

Waygo

This is a fun one. You just hold your phone camera over any menu and it'll magically translate the characters into approximate English translations, which appear in real time on your screen. So you're about 80% less likely to accidentally order a plate of fermented herring dicks or something similar. It also has very, very limited function with non-food signs, but not much. Super useful, even if it's just for showing off.

That's your lot. If I find any more I'll do an update. There's another one called Gurunavi which is supposed to be really good for finding places to eat, but it's pushed more toward big towns and cities.

#travel #japan #Workaway #iwanai #hokkaido #japanese #apps