No.141633
>The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) and the Canadian Snowbird Association remind Canadians who have spent the winter in warmer climates to plan ahead for a smooth return home.
>In response to U.S. tariffs on Canadian-made goods, Canada has imposed a 25 per cent counter tariff on certain U.S. products brought into Canada. The CBSA is collecting the tariffs on behalf of the Government of Canada in the form of a surtax.
Presumably the US will do the same elsewhere. I'm not sure of the minimums though
No.154219
I am planning to go to Japan next year and stumbled upon this thread. Would knowing N5-4 Japanese with some engrish be enough to do okayish in the less tourist frequented areas?
>>141597Don't forget to say de gozaru too.
No.154223
>>154219>Would knowing N5-4 Japanese with some engrish be enoughhmm don't think so, no
No.154224
>>154219>Would knowing N5-4 Japanese with some engrish be enough to do okayish in the less tourist frequented areas?You're perfectly fine even if you don't speak a lick of Japanese as long as you try to be polite and smile.
You're not travelling to Caracas.
No.154225
>>154224I mostly mean in the case of communicating enough with some locals and understanding some signs and directions. I know it's not like going to Johannesburg, South Africa where you get mugged and fucked if they catch you being a clueless tourist.
No.159434
>>159430You'll be fine, but Fuji is a shit hike no matter what. You don't wanna spend any more time on the mountain than you have to, I recommend sleeping in the area and taking the first bus up and doing it in a single go. Just run up, take your photo and have some dried sausage and a canned highball and be on you way.
If you're reasonable fit it's like 4 or 5 hours up and a few down. You're definitely gonna feel like shit, afterwards no matter what, since Fuji has awful terrain.
No.159435
>>159433It's like JS, but a little later.
No.159443
Concerning car rentals: I found out renting a bike is much cheaper and the restrictions are very lax assuming you have motorcycle endorsement on your license in your native country. In the country I live in there is no restriction on engine size. Anyone that takes a short written test can jump on a 1000+cc bike and ride it around if they want. This means I can rent large bike in Japan for almost nothing and ride it around even though locals have to go through grueling process to work up to riding anything larger than 400cc.
There are several companies offering this service at a flat rate because it's nearly impossible to import a foreign bike into the country. No way to pass the inspection without being a citizen. But you can rent most any bike for about $500 USD a week-2 weeks and ride it as many miles as you want. Considering doing this next time. Car rentals are much more expensive and complicated. Train is fine but train gets boring.
No.159444
>>159443If you do this probably want to pay extra for insurance. Since dropping the bike means you're buying it otherwise ($10k+ USD). My friend found this out the hard way when he dropped a bike test riding it. Ended up paying $20k for something that was totaled already.
Japanese motorcycle law is nuts. I understand why the tourists ohhh and ahhh and want to take pictures of us now when we pass their bus and bus stops. They never see the largest Japanese bikes in their own country outside of race tracks because it's so rare to own one. I assumed liter bikes would be very common on Japanese streets but hardly anyone rides anything bigger than 400cc because it's so expensive to work your way up to owning anything larger. So they're building most of them just for export.
I found out both my bikes are straight illegal in Japan and would never pass inspection even if I became full fledged citizen and paid a lot of money to import them. All because of an ECU flash and aftermarket exhaust systems (both of which the Japanese sold me straight from their own factory of course).
No.159447
>>159444I rented a motorcycle twice in japan, including a ride to mount fuji using that southwestern highway out of tokyo that hugs the sea. It was so perfect and beautiful.
Both times it was with 250cc bikes. To be real, even besides the lower speed limits, Japanese terrain is so hilly and the paths are so meandering and dense that the power of even a 400cc is rarely needed other than for some extra storage on the bike.
No.159448
>>159444Also, once I was lost in a warehouse/industrial area with nobody around and I saw this guy riding a red ducati come through out of nowhere. He must have throttled up quickly to about ~80mph.
There's at least a few people there that know how to have fun anyways.
No.159449
>>159444Guess that's why they like Super Cubs so much
No.159450
>>159448Was looking at driving videos to get an idea of lefthand driving since I'm going to drive Asashikawa to Tomakomai by going south to the bottom.
Apparently they do leisure biking on the mountain roads mostly like Initial D portrayed.
No.159451
Was looking at the Sapporro JRA stadium and saw some precure meetup last week.
I think there's a G3 race sometime but not sure how tickets are purchased at this things or what time it actually is...
https://jra-fun.jp/event/sapporo/202501/ No.159452
>>159450I took a bike up (and down) the irohazaka.
Wasn't fun really but I wanted to see the waterfall.
No.159456
>>159447>>159448Just seems odd to me where I live no one considers riding anything smaller than a 600cc. 250-400cc are considered to be "learner bikes" and for women/children. They're passed from one person to the next every season as people upgrade to something bigger. A lot of people never bother to ride those in the first place if they want cruisers. My first street bike was a 550cc Suzuki and I constantly got made fun of for riding "small rice burner".
But once I found out we're the odd ball with insane laws it made more sense. Here I know people that have ridden for 30+ years that never bothered to get a proper license because no one checks them in the first place.
No.159457
japan is a really dense country... it makes sense that they have stronger rules. Plus the whole stigma of motorbikes is people who want a cheap vehicle to terrorize automobiles
No.159460
>>159457I think it has more to do with them not being as tall/large as the average person in my country. 250cc-400cc bikes are really uncomfortable to ride long distances on the interstates and aren't nearly as fun on mountain and back roads due to lack of power. It's like riding a scooter.
As far as them being more strict that's anywhere that isn't here. When I was growing up they let anyone that could reach the pedals drive on the public roads as long as you weren't going on the interstate. Then when I turned 15 I got an international driver's license so I could by-pass local law that required you be 16 to apply for a state issued driver's license. I could legally drive overseas before I was allowed to do it in my home town. Not that it mattered because the local cops knew all of us kids and wouldn't stop us anyway when our parents sent us into town for gas and supplies alone.
Japan is super strict with their vehicle registration stuff compared to my country though. I can't even legally import and ride an unmodified bike I bought directly from a Japanese dealer in my home country. Simply because it's 250cc too large for most riders there and won't pass Japan's emission laws even in stock configuration. I could rent the 400cc version but I don't think it'd be very fun considering the 650cc one I own can barely hold 70mph without vibrating you so much you go numb.
No.159501
>>159491Yeah. Gonna upload photos and stuff to one of my servers for family.
Prob. Make a thread or something
No.159787
>>159786you are gonna hang out with the other guy who's already over there right
No.159789
>>159787Yeah we plan to meet up and go to comiket.
>>159788I already washed it.
No.159790
>>159786It's funny how cats react to your change of behavior and feel the need to express themselves somehow.
Well, funny to people that don't have to clean it up I suppose.
No.159791
who's going to feed the cat...
No.159792
>>159789I'm jealous
kanpai for me
No.159793
>>159792Maybe I could pee on your bed
No.159967
>>159789>we plan to meet up and go to comiketwhere do anons make kissu meetup plans?
No.159968
>>159967in the secret mod channel
No.159977
>>141008...people do that?
No.159997
>>159993¥ Oarai¥ 15000 inhabitantsI don't think it's gonna be an issue.
No.160000
>>159993I was there earlier this year. The people of Ooarai embrace GuP to an unbelievable degree, to the point where you can hardly look through the window of any business without seeing something GuP related. I really want to stay a bit longer next time I'm in Japan.
The Ankou festival is apparently really busy, so you wont stand out much.
No.160012
>>160006If you rent one of the electric bikes from the station, you can see most of the town in one full day to be honest, two days to take everything in like I did would be plenty. The town is so full of unique shops and restaurants, you could add another day or two just checking those out. My idea for next time is to rent some gear and do some fishing in the ocean during my stay.
Most restaurants and stores "adopt" a GuP character as a mascot and hand out pins and stuff when you shop, so it's interesting to go around looking for them.
This map has a lot of good info for that stuff:
https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/viewer?mid=14obawpde88v_EVtvJ5Tkso1ttH8 No.160324
>>159993The next trip I do I'll probably take the ferry from hokkaido to oorai.
Hopefully the next movie doesn't land in 2026 so I can use my money for other things