jref friends disappoints me ..

[MCS]

i signed up there at the beginning of this year, something like that.
but it seems a better name would be jref dating instead of 'friends'... i made a profile there to chat with people who can tell me some stuff about travelling in japan and practicing laguage, so i, in return, could tell them about travelling in europe.

wel, six months later i realise guys messaging me there are mostly just looking for dates, or they just send a message, you reply back and forth a couple of times and then they disappear from the face of the earth (or internet).

the same with egenki, but atleast there you don't need to pay for a vip membership to be able to add friends and send emails. but i'd say on 80% of those sites it's mostly just guys looking for girls...such a letdown.

sorry to sound so negative, but i want to let people know about this before they sign up and spare them some troubles.
if this post belongs in another category then sorry, i saw the 'penpals' link in this section so i posted it here.

 

[Glenski]

If you want to chat about traveling in Japan, then you must have some questions.

Ask them. That will start a line of responses more geared towards what you want, I would think.

 

[MCS]

yes you would think so, right ?

but that's usually when they disappear, haha, i guess because they figure i'm not there for dates or adding me on msn so they can flood me with chats about if i've ever dated japanese guys (this happened) or anything like that.

i've gotten most info and interesting chats about travel from girls on the site but even then, it's just asking questions back and forth for like three four messages and then they disappear, it doesn't go anywhere.

there's no real sense community there, i was also surprised i had to pay to mail back people who had sent me smiles, or that i couldn't add friends without paying. i should've read more about the site before signing up =P

 

[undrentide]

If you need some specific information on travelling in Japan, what about posting your questions at a subforum? There's one specifically on travel.

Travelling in Japan | Japan Forum

(Another recommendation is japan-guide.com, I'm a frequent visitor to their "questions" forum and there seem to be quite a few members who are very much knowledgeable on travelling in Japan.

japan-guide.com forum - Questions)

 

[MCS]

exactly, that's why i signed up here on this forum. my misunderstanding was that the members who post here are on jref friends so you can build up contact lists, pretty much like facebook if you know what i mean (more directly). i thought it was part of the forum, but it turned out to be (for the majority of it) a dating site.

i've found information in the japan practical/travel subforums yes, this is a very good forum to find information on that, just thought jref friends was the same only not a forum.

i hope what i'm saying makes sense !

 

[Glenski]

Not all discussion boards are the same. Lesson learned. No real harm, I hope. There actually IS a sense of community here, but it's not as overt as you might have expected. Stick around and join the crowd, and continue to learn.

Want another forum about traveling in Japan? Go to www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree but as far as I know, there is no "friends" function there, either. But the people there are more often travelers.

 

[MCS]

haha; "lesson learned", not really when it comes to this forum as a..forum, i had been lurking for quite some time, just jref friends as a site .. i think people thinking about signing up there should be warned it's not what it says it is. but indeed, no real harm, just wasted some time ;-)

my partner has been to japan lots of times to visit family so that helps but i'm reeally interested in tokyo because i like the idea of melting pot busy cities, so i wanted to meet some people who live there so they could tell me about nice venues, bars etc i'm not too fussed about hanging out with strangers in strange cities either. my taste in music is quite 'picky' since i play in bands myself so i wanted to know about really specific areas and venues. (like shimokitazawa for instance, also ochanomizu for guitar shopping)..stuff like that, it doesn't get much discussion on this forum since it's mostly about practical stuff about getting around.

 

[Ashikaga]

....i wanted to know about really specific areas and venues. (like shimokitazawa for instance, also ochanomizu for guitar shopping)..stuff like that, it doesn't get much discussion on this forum since it's mostly about practical stuff about getting around.

There are members here who live in Tokyo. Who knows? Maybe there are musicians, too. You should post your Qs and see if anyone can help you find out about the "scene".

 

[epigene]

my taste in music is quite 'picky' since i play in bands myself so i wanted to know about really specific areas and venues. (like shimokitazawa for instance, also ochanomizu for guitar shopping)..stuff like that, it doesn't get much discussion on this forum since it's mostly about practical stuff about getting around.

The shopping street for guitars and other musical instruments in Ochanomizu:
御茶ノ水楽器店街[地図] | 東京ガイド 【またたび】東京観光案内
The favourite place to go for my son, the musician. He says the things there aren't much different from those in New York or Boston, but the great thing is that you find everything you need and can window shop through all the shops--very much like Akihabara for electrical appliances.

There are also major shops like Ikebe:
イケベ楽器店Website | 日本最大級の楽器通販サイト[新品・中古・アウトレット]

 

[aardwolf]

woaaah, thanks for the links epigene!


definitely going to the ochanomizu area.

i also gotta find a store that carries "caparison" guitars, i think they're based in japan.

 

[epigene]

i also gotta find a store that carries "caparison" guitars, i think they're based in japan.

Caparison isn't sold at a "regular" guitar shop, although you'll be able to find sales clerks (guitar freaks themselves) who can direct you to suitable shops.

According to info on the Web, it is available most likely through
(a) Kato Gakki in Nishi-Shinjuku
http://katoh-gakki.com/
(b) Iida Gakki (appears to be in Nagoya)
http://www.iidamusical.com/

I don't know about the prices... I've seen a bass guitar selling at 250,000 yen upwards on the Web.

EDIT: Found that Caparison is sold by Kyowa Shokai Co., Ltd. The shops in Tokyo that handle Caparison are:

Ikebe Gakki Ikebukuro Store
Ikebe Gakki Shibuya Store (see the link above)
Ikebe Gakki Ribore Akihabara Store
Kurosawa Gakki Ochanomizu Store (found in the Ochanomizu guitar shopping district)
ESP BIG BOSS Tokyo Store (also in Ochanomizu)

For other shops outside Tokyo, check here:
くらまめ くらしの豆知識 - くらしの豆知識 節約術からお得情報まで、様々な情報を発信中！

Happy hunting!

 

[aardwolf]

Caparison isn't sold at a "regular" guitar shop, although you'll be able to find sales clerks (guitar freaks themselves) who can direct you to suitable shops.
According to info on the Web, it is available most likely through
(a) Kato Gakki in Nishi-Shinjuku
http://katoh-gakki.com/
(b) Iida Gakki (appears to be in Nagoya)
http://www.iidamusical.com/
I don't know about the prices... I've seen a bass guitar selling at 250,000 yen upwards on the Web. :emoji_blush:
EDIT: Found that Caparison is sold by Kyowa Shokai Co., Ltd. The shops in Tokyo that handle Caparison are:
Ikebe Gakki Ikebukuro Store
Ikebe Gakki Shibuya Store (see the link above)
Ikebe Gakki Ribore Akihabara Store
Kurosawa Gakki Ochanomizu Store (found in the Ochanomizu guitar shopping district)
ESP BIG BOSS Tokyo Store (also in Ochanomizu)
For other shops outside Tokyo, check here:
美容男子のエステ・コスメ辛口レビュー・体験談ブログ - 美容男子のブサメン、ビヨ男が様々な美容法・コスメ・エステ等に挑戦し、イケメンを目指すブログ。アトピーによる色素沈着・ニキビ跡、ほうれい線、一重体型ブス等々と多数のコンプレックスありなブサメン男子。さて頑張るぞ。
Happy hunting! :

Wow. どうもありがとうございました～～っ！

 

[MCS]

haha, caparison look so horribly gay... too fancy to my taste. too exspensive too. it makes me think of spoiled 15year olds playing 'metal'.

my favourite guitar is my fender japan mustang but i also love all those 60's toy guitars with millions of switches and knobs. ;-)


i knew it was ochanomizu yes, i'll be staying at a ryokan in asakusa so ochanomizu is about the same distance as akihabara from there (?), defo not as far as shibuya, shinjuku, ..shimokitazawa is also on the other side of tokyo from asakusa, so far !
but i have no idea how long it would take taking the metro ... practical stuff like this only people who have been there or live there can tell you.

 

[Kinsao]

@MCS: generaly on this forum, if you start a thread on something your interested in e.g. guitar shopping, etc, people will respond if they can. people here are pretty friendly like that.