Earlier quoted context omitted.
Closer to 1/4th not 4x. US pop is over 400M.
331M
Citizens. Not all who live here are.
Van Life in Japan
191–200 of 231 posts
Re: Van Life in Japan
#192Somewhat unrelated, but for folks who might enjoy living like a vagrant in Japan, it is also worth checking their extensive network of mountain huts [1].
They are a little pricey (JPY 8,000+ per night, meals included), fairly strict in terms of lights out, wake up time, etc, and can get pretty cozy when you're sharing a room with upwards of 20 other people. But also some of the best, most memorable experiences of my life for being able to climb up to 3,000m elevation and just relax and take in the stunning views while offering the convenience of warm meals, toilets, bedding, and a often times a vending machine full of beer.
[1] https://thejapanalps.com/en/cottage-hotel/cottage-camping/
Re: Van Life in Japan
#193Earlier quoted context omitted.
I came here to quote this with virtually the same response. I will go so far as to say this is gross.
Gross. Anyone who has camped knows that feeling of sadness when it’s cold outside but you have to go to the bathroom at 3am. But some of the best moments I’ve had outside are during that time. The air is cleaner, you can see the stars if it’s clear, you might hear coyotes or other animals yipping not too far off...well worth the momentary annoyance.
True, but at the same time I'd wager its rather difficult to appreciate the grand mystery of nature while you're sloshing around in a pee soaked diaper.
Re: Van Life in Japan
#194Japanese people are usually very organized and neat, I can't imagine they'd appreciate backpackers coming through like this. Where I come from there are ever increasing number of people living in vans and its a real problem. They usually just cause problems, dont pay hotel or property taxes and ruin the area for everyone else. Some towns have banned them which is worse for the few locals that used to do it on a short…
As someone living in Japan, this doesn’t strike me as something locals would complain about. Heck, my Japanese in-laws did a week long van camping trip last year, and I think they’d be impressed with this person’s setup.
As someone who has been living in Japan for more than 2 decades, don't be surprised if you get a knock on your window in the middle of the night from your friendly neigborhood police officer.
Re: Van Life in Japan
#195Earlier quoted context omitted.
>Our van doesn’t have toilets, considering how difficult it is to dump trash I wouldn’t recommend using your own toilets while traveling.
I don't buy it. What do buses and RVs with toilets do in japan? If it is that difficult to dump trash, then what do these guys do with their soiled diapers? Certainly there has to be better options than wearing diapers.
Buses with toilets probably have dedicated disposal facilities operated by the companies. Long-distance buses here are mostly run by big conglomerates.
Re: Van Life in Japan
#196Earlier quoted context omitted.
If not you someone else would have talked. Same for this post. Japan has a population of over 125 million (4x US?). Over 2000 children are born there per day. We are not movie protagonists, don't worry about it
Closer to 1/4th not 4x. US pop is over 400M.
Bad math sry lol
Re: Van Life in Japan
#197While I'm happy for OP I'm afraid finding a "paradise" and telling the internet about it has the risk of ruining it. If 10k people read the article and 1% go to the same place and blog about it and bring even more people, then sooner or later it will be ruined and chances are localities will ban such adventures. I've done something similar.. some years ago there was a casino I would go to where you would pay 10$ entr…
I doubt there's much risk of that in this case. A person who wanted to imitate this would need to: - Live in Japan, or be able to get a Japanese visa - Have a Japanese driver's license - Have a remote working job with flexible enough hours - Be willing to live a van life with all its inconveniences Plus it's not like there's any particular single paradise to be ruined. Japan is a big place. Even if 1000 people did re…
Yeah you're probably right, this particular lifehack/exploit has a very high barrier to entry.
But the general idea still stands. I remember hearing Anthony Bourdain would not adeverise great little restaurants he found for fear of running them.
Re: Van Life in Japan
#198Earlier quoted context omitted.
Just use a water bottle like the rest of us! I lived out of an Explorer for 3 months, not once did an adult diaper cross my mind.
This only works for about 50% of the population.
How would you know? Can any ladies here confirm whether they can or cannot pee in a bottle?
I imagine if you place the bottle at the urethra opening it's possible it might work.
Re: Van Life in Japan
#199Japanese people are usually very organized and neat, I can't imagine they'd appreciate backpackers coming through like this. Where I come from there are ever increasing number of people living in vans and its a real problem. They usually just cause problems, dont pay hotel or property taxes and ruin the area for everyone else. Some towns have banned them which is worse for the few locals that used to do it on a short…
What problems do they cause? Why would they pay hotel or property taxes when they do not reside there, and have none of the rights of residents (e.g. school system access)? Also, isn't blaming "an increasing number of people living in vans" a perfect example of shooting the messenger and ignoring the message?
> What problems do they cause?
Mostly poor manners / not cleaning up after themselves. A few years back there was a family from the UK visting New Zealand that was so poorly behaved that their exploits were being tracked around the country in the news and they were eventually deported [1]. This article also cites a woman from France defecating in the street when her camper broke down. And examples of foreign tourists not respecting local traffic laws.
Not saying that this is representative of all van-lifers, but when you are traveling around in a van with no plumbing or trash disposal services, it does require a bit more responsibility on the part of the travelers to follow the rules and clean up after themselves vs. staying at a hotel and using public transportation. And not everyone is up to the task it seems.
[1] https://www.nzherald.co.nz/travel/new-zealands-worst-tourist...
Re: Van Life in Japan
#200Earlier quoted context omitted.
This only works for about 50% of the population.
How would you know? Can any ladies here confirm whether they can or cannot pee in a bottle? I imagine if you place the bottle at the urethra opening it's possible it might work.
With practice, and be prepared to spill for quite a while, judging by how many of these exist (quite a few also just recommend to use a funnel):
https://www.wikihow.com/Pee-in-a-Bottle-(Women)
https://www.rei.com/blog/hike/girl-talk-peeing-in-the-backco...
https://www.wikihow.com/Pee-in-a-Bottle
https://www.tripsavvy.com/can-women-pee-in-a-bottle-backpack...
https://www.ozmo.io/how-can-a-girl-pee-in-a-water-bottle/
(and many, many more)
It certainly doesn't seem anywhere near as easy as just [using] a water bottle.