Tang's DW

Falling behind on daily updates, oh well. Quick check-in:

I don't particularly like Sapporo as a city; it feels like the USA and USSR had an ugly baby. Wide streets, lots of parking lots, lots of blocky high buildings, not enough businesses and street life for the inferred density (possibly incorrect: high building + parking lot = not that dense.)

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This morning I got up and out much earlier than usual -- particularly out, showering and getting dressed without stopping by my laptop. So by 8 AM I was wandering around, getting morning sun, and observing all the other people out, going to school or strolling or whatnot. The shopping street just north of me was still depressingly shuttered, but activity was high. Walking. Biking. Wheelchairs in the middle of the street.

On seeing the wheelchairs I realized: "no cars", and while these streets are usually low-traffic, this seemed to be no-traffic, and an expectation thereof. So I paid more attention to the signs, and found: ( Read more... )

I'm just falling behind on posts. Haven't finished the tail end of my Osaka visit, and now I have Taipei stuff queued. But to try to reset to where I am... US passports get you into much of the world with little hassle, for a 90 day (sometimes 30) visit. But what happens after that?

Schengen Area is pretty strict: only 90 out of the past 180 days. If you want to perpetual tourist there, you have to spend half your time outside: UK, maybe some of the Balkans, or Morocco. OTOH some Asian countries are said to not care; I've read about people basically hopping back and forth over the Thai border to reset their visas, and a comment claimed Taiwan doesn't care either. For Japan, OTOH, Immigration officials are said to get suspicious if you seem like you're working illegally via fast cycling. But apparently a 2nd visit with a 5 week outing doesn't trigger flags; my return was as unquestioned as my first arrival, and I'm back in Osaka. ( Read more... )