Phil comments

If you have spent a fortune on airfares and hotels, I’m sure a higher price rail fare will not stop traveler's.

Last month we had a couple of days in Fukuoka. It was surprising how few tourists were around.

The government and prefectures really need to get there heads together and work out once and for all how to get tourist out from the Golden Triangle. A good start may be to talk with tourists and find out what stops them visiting the rest of this beautiful country.

Locally our cities tourist information is very much aimed at internal traveller's. It is like they assume you know an event is happening, so it’s ok to only publish details a week or two before. We have a Shinkensen station but you do not see many western travellers.

I’m not a big drinker, the odd beer or wine. Found my self in the spirts section at the supermarket, was surprised how cheap the scotch was. Time to tax the luxuries more and reduce the day to day items.

Then zero rate baby/children essentials items.

Depending on the results of the polls, which will fill vacant seats previously held by his ruling Liberal Democratic Party, Kishida, who has set securing re-election as the LDP leader next year as a top priority, might review his strategy, they added.

Call me old fashioned, but shouldn’t the well being and prosperity of us and the country be a Prime Ministers Top Priority?

just another "unfinished" product

A while back there was a lawmaker promoted to Cybersecurity Minister who admitted he did not know why he got the job. He did not know how to use a PC.

Im sure here are a few more like that in the early planning of the My Number card.

I saw a comment yesterday from a guy who said he was a dentist who did home visits. At the moment he takes details from patients health card and gets paid. He worried that there is no mobile option for the my number card and will have to stop home visits. I’m sure there are other things like that that have still not been thought of.

I was in the UK visiting family when the BBC documentary was shown. It was powerful and shocking how over the years so much effect was taken to cover this up. A TV company here need to have the courage to show it. If they do, showing as is, no talking heads or cut backs to the studio panel.

As commented above pay could be a big factor . I was surprised a month or 2 ago, when a SDF guy was found to have not been paying for his daily meals in the base canteen. S

Also we cannot get personal doe the SDF but we are in the process of spending an unbelievable amount of cash on weapons. Will there be enough people to use them or will they just be left gathering dust?

I have just added this date to my diary. Any news yet on who we need to complain too is it does not happen?

Watching some of the videos repeated time and again on TV, it surprises me there appeared to be no security behind the PM and the crowd. At the time of the attack they show Kishida with his back to the crowd.

I for one thought these transfer of prisoners back to Japan would happen sooner rather than later. President Marcos will start an Official 5 day visit to Japan tomorrow.

https://www.mofa.go.jp/s_sa/sea2/ph/page1e_000562.html

So would this mean reducing the additional cash the Government wants to spend on military equipment. Then use it for supporting peoples lives here, or have I got my rose tinted glasses on again.

The Diet is now in session, maybe the lawmakers should get the ball rolling and stop wearing masks now.

What I don't get is why it is alot cheaper for people traveling direct from the UK to Japan than I pay to visit the UK.

It feels like I'm being used to offer tourist cheaper flights.

It may just be me, but I would of thought you would not advertise going to visit a country that is involved in a bloody war. If you feel its that important that you need to be there, you just turn up.

Ideally forget about the photo op and use zoom.

It is reported that the guy driving the car had just visited the temple as part of his job working for the  Kyoto Heritage Preservation department. Not a fun phone call to have to make to your boss.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-63304390

Yet a couple of weeks ago a bus company was disciplined after throwing off the bus a maskless passenger.

https://japantoday.com/category/national/bus-company-disciplined-after-driver-orders-maskless-passenger-off-bus

We are not on the main overseas tourist trail, but we did get coach trips from the cruise ships. Local news interviewed a couple of people involved in the tourist industry and they are looking forward to the return of Chinese and Korean tourist. For them it was quiet simple, they spend the most money. So even if Japan opens fully tomorrow, it could be a slow recover.

They have just shown a photo of the school bus on TV. It was a minibus with a vinyl wrap over the windows. Cannot get my head around how someone could miss one child in such a small bus. So sad.

Yubaru Today  07:50 am JST

> Rationed health care has many good things about it, but overabundance is not one.

It' not really "rationed" health care, it's just an over abundance of small hospitals and specialized hospitals that are not equipped to deal with medical emergencies.

I was trying to explain this to my father back in the UK. I said to him, imagine you have hurt your foot and you broke your big toe. You have to search for a hospital/clinic that deals with feet. You see the doctor and he tells you he does treat feet, but not toes. So you pay his fee and have to start the search again.

This is a silly example, but this is what the ambulance crews are up against everyday and then you add Covid into the mix and there job to find a hospital can be a nightmare.

There was a case reported last week with a guy in his 70’s that had hurt his leg. He was taken to hospital and they tested him before admission. Tested positive and hospital would not accept him. Took 35 hours for the ambulance service to find a hospital to take him. It was also reported it had beat the last record time of 20 odd hours.

"His cabinet lineup will show that the LDP is taking tough measures to deal with what is now mostly a problem of individuals before it taints the whole party," said Airo Hino, a professor at Waseda University.

"The Unification Church problem is something he doesn't want to drag on."

What I cannot get my head around is an old lady gets a phone call from her son. He has lost the company cheque and needs to repay company. He sends someone around to collect the money, then the old lady finds out she had her money stolen. It is on the local news and police are outside the supermarkets warning old people of this con, and maybe someone gets arrested.

We now have a church/cult that appears to have the ear of a number of politicians at all levels and they are asked to just to review there past or present ties. Also causing misery to the public that get pulled into clutches. There needs to be a police investigation into the church/cult.

is it not difficult to know what the true numbers of infections are now? There were reported of shortages of PCR Tests and Antigen test, or has that how been sorted out?

Also last week the Health Minister Goto made a request

"The health ministry is asking people with mild COVID-19 symptoms to not rush to see a doctor if they are under 65 and have no underlying medical conditions."

This is the link to the news report on the news conference held on the 4th August

https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/14688202

So no punishment reported except a deep bow. I wonder if anyone has told him how many vehicles western car companies had to repair and buy back for doing a similar thing.

Our local power station was closed 2 months ago. It was not damaged by earthquake, or in need of repair for any reason. It was oil and coal powered and was closed to help reduce the countries environment / carbon output numbers.

while in the long term this maybe a good move for the environment. Maybe not the best time when during the last winter there were supply concerns. It is going to be a long summer with the heat and possible water shortage due to the very short rain season.

The tourism ministry plans to create guidelines on anti-virus measures for hotels and other industries before the resumption of inbound tourism, a key driver for Japan's economy before the pandemic's emergence.

Surely this should already be in place as people have been travelling around Japan for a least a year now. In fact, was it not one of the the plans to restart the GoTo program, to have infection control plan for hotels and tourist sites along with vaccine passports or negative tests.

Or is it a Special set of rules be people coming into the country?

I’m finally visiting family in the UK next week. I’m sure my family think I’m joking with all the paperwork, apps and testing I need to return back to Japan, with the rules at the moment.

If the government is serious about encouraging tourism in the near future big changes need to be made. Not just stopping testing at the airport. The 72 hour test prior to the flight is a real stumbling block for tourists. I have found as testing is being reduced, so are the places to get tested and have the Japanese government form completed. Then having to input the info into the app and a copy of the pcr test at least 16 hours before arriving.

For me I am having to stay at Heathrow for a couple of days to get tested. This is not ideal, but it is what I have to do if I want to see my elderly parents.

Not sure I would consider doing this if I was just a tourist. Would not have the time and it is not cheap.

This has been in the local media a few times now. It was reported that the town had around 3500 population, so not that big. A little while ago the city office was able to pay another ¥100,000 to the 463 residents, including the guy who kept the 46 million. Cannot make this stuff up.

BigPToday  06:55 am JST

It’s the testing before and on arrival that’s bothering everyone, especially possible tourists. 

Vaccinated with a booster (3 jabs) should be enough, don’t you think?

Planning to go back to UK next month to finally see my parents again. The 72 hour test before flight is the first thing I would like to see stopped. A local health centre can do the test, but concerns if they can get the sign doctors form to me in time. So have to get to Heathrow a couple of days early to get tested.

Also if your flight is delayed more the 24 hours, the 72 hour test is invalid and have to start the process again.

Maybe a little off topic, the prices to travel from Japan to UK are around ¥150,000 more than travelling UK to Japan. This is In economy, I was shocked at the difference on the same route and times.

Within a family, the first member would receive 2,400 yen and the second member 1,600 yen per day.

I would have thought they could pay every adult family member the same allowance .

A computer system failure of any kind and Just in Time manufacturing really do not mix.

You don’t hear anyone talking about it. Is the levelling out of infections partly due to the shortage of test kits as reported at the end of a January.