(previous chapter)
Arrival in Japan and at NTT
It is normal practice for a NTT researcher to meet new visiting researchers
arriving at Narita airport. There is a rendezvous point near the
arrival gate. On other occasions, however, you may make the trip
yourself. For some of the labs (see Yokosuka
below) it is easiest to
go directly to the lab from Narita Airport (À®ÅĶõ¹Á) avoiding central
Tokyo, but in other cases you will want to pass through Tokyo (or stop
there for other business). The most convenient way is to take the JR
Narita Express (N'EX) to Shinjuku (¿·½É) station (about 70 min.,
reserved seats only, about 3000-yen each way). From Narita you can also
take the Keisei (µþÀ®) line (about 1700-yen for the Skyliner express
trains, reserved seats only, or about 900-yen for the usual slower trains
that take about an hour). From the Keisei line, you have to change
trains at Nippori (ÆüÊëΤ) or Ueno (¾åÌî) to the JR Yamanote
(»³¼ê, green color code) line for Shinjuku (¿·½É) station. Both the
NEX and the Keisei lines start in the basement of Narita airport. You
can also take a limousine bus from Narita to Shinjuku (2900-yen).
However, the length of the journey (1.5 to 3 hours) greatly depends on
the traffic conditions which are often appalling. Tickets for all
transportation from Narita are available in the arrival lobby of
Narita airport, just after you exit customs.
Since trains are crowded (especially during the rush hours), and since
at some stations you may have to walk quite some distance to change
trains, it may be convenient to have your luggage delivered directly
to your home (or the Lab). There are delivery services available in
the lobby of Narita that will deliver on the following day (about
2500-yen per piece). The same services can collect your luggage from
your home and deliver it to the airport when you leave Japan.
Musashino:
Musashino-shi (Éð¢Ìî»Ô) is a relatively green and largely quiet
suburb in the west of Tokyo about 20 km away from Shinjuku (for an
overview see map M-1).
Musashino is easily reached from Shinjuku (¿·½É
about 15 min., 210-yen) and Tokyo (Åìµþ, about 35 min., and 370-yen)
stations via the JR Chuuoo-Line (Ãæ±ûÀþ, orange color code,
platform 10
in Shinjuku). To get to the Lab you have to get off at Mitaka (»°Âë)
station. There are different levels of express trains, but all stop at
Mitaka. From the north exit of the station (Ë̸ý, kitaguchi, see
map M-2) you can take a taxi (about 700-yen) to
"NTT tsuuken" or you can go
by bus (about 10 min., 180-yen, pay when entering the bus -- see
table below).
For the walk from the bus stop to the Lab (about 20 min.),
please refer to map M-4.
There are also bus connections from JR
Kichijooji (µÈ¾Í»û) station where the buses leave from the north exit
(Ë̸ý, kitaguchi, about 15 min., 180-yen).
If you take the private Seibu-Shinjuku-Line (À¾Éð¿·½ÉÀþ train from
Seibu-Shinjuku station (which is different from Shinjuku station, but
only a five minute walk away), you have to get off at Higashifushimi
(ÅìÉú¸«). There are several levels of express trains that can be
distinguished by the color of the destination sign displayed on the
outside of the train. Red express (kyuukoo µÞ¹Ô)
trains are fast but do
not stop at Higashifushimi; you have to change to a green or black one
at Kami-shakujii (¾åÀпÀ°æ). Green (junkyuu ½àµÞ) trains
are the most
convenient ones; they are a little slower but stop at Higashifushimi.
Black (futsuu ÉáÄÌ) trains stop at every station and
thus are slow.
From the station it is a walk of about 10 min. to the Lab
(see map M-3).
from no. destination get off at (map M-4)
------------------------------------------------------------
Mitaka 12 ÅìÉú¸«
Higashifushimi
13 ÌøÂô±ØÁ° Musashino jutaku
Yagisawa eki-mae (Éð¢Ìî½»Âð),
in front of the
Keio supermarket
14 ÅìÉú¸«±ØÆþ¸ý
Higashifushimi eki iriguchi
------------------------------------------------------------
Kichijooji 53 ÌøÂô±ØÁ° Musashino jutaku
Yagisawa eki-mae
52 ÅÅÄÌ΢
Dentsuu-ura
(final stop near north
gate of the Lab)
------------------------------------------------------------
Mitaka 01 ËÌ΢ Shiyakusho mae
Kitaura (»ÔÌò½êÁ°),
02 Éð¢´Ø±Ø in front of City Hall
Musashi-Seki eki
03 ÅÄ̵¶¶¾ì
Tanashihashiba
------------------------------------------------------------
Mitaka 40 Åŵ¤ÄÌ¿®¸¦µæ½ê at final stop
Denkitsuushin kenkyuujo
(this bus goes to the main entrance of the
Lab, it runs frequently from 7:45 to 8:30 in
the morning, and again from about 5 to 7pm)
There are coupon tickets available which offer some saving (six rides
180-yen each plus 30-yen bonus ticket for 1000-yen). Ask the driver
for a 'kaisuuken' (²ó¿ô·ô) meaning multiple ticket. If you use the bus
every day, you can also get commuter tickets (teiki ken Äê´ü·ô) and
bus route maps at the Kantoo Bus (´ØÅì¥Ð¥¹) and Seibu Bus (À¾Éð¥Ð¥¹)
offices. There is a Kantoo bus office on the Itsukaichi-Kaidoo
(¸ÞÆü»Ô³¹Æ») near the Lab (Musashino eigyoosho, ±Ä¶È½ê) where the #51
bus terminates (see map M-1).
The Seibu tickets are available on the
buses and at a special window in Kichijooji station across from the #1
bus stop.
Atsugi:
Atsugi-shi (¸üÌÚ»Ô) is a smaller city 46km to the southwest of Tokyo
and directly west of Yokohama-shi (²£ÉÍ»Ô) in the center of
Kanagawa Prefecture. To get there from Tokyo, you will go from
Shinjuku (¿·½É) station to either Hon-Atsugi or Aikoo-ishida.
Directions for both are given below. Both stations are on the Odakyuu
line (¾®ÅĵÞ). The Shinjuku Odakyuu station is different from the
Shinjuku JR station, although they are located in the same building.
The two lines have separate management and separate ticket gates. If
you are coming from Narita Airport using the Narita Express to
Shinjuku, you will have to walk from the JR station to the Odakyuu
station. The Shinjuku Odakyuu station has two stories. Regular trains
(which stop at every station, and therefore are really slow) start
from the first floor; both express and super-express trains start from
the second floor. The express trains leave every 10 minutes from
platform 5. The last express to Hon-Atsugi leaves at 11:30pm. The
Odakyuu line splits in two at the Sagami-ohno (ÁêÌÏÂçÌî) station, and
usually the first six cars of the train go to Odawara (¾®Åĸ¶) or
Hakone-yumoto (È¢º¬ÅòËÜ), and the last four go to Enoshima
(¹¾¥ÎÅç). It is therefore a safe bet to get on one of the first six
cars, as only these will stop in Hon-Atsugi or Aikoo-ishida. The super
express (tokkyuu romance car, Æõޥí¥Þ¥ó¥¹¥«¡¼, orange color) is more
than twice as expensive (920-yen vs. 420-yen) as the express train
(Kyuukoo, µÞ¹Ô, red) but it only takes 45 minutes
instead of 60 minutes
to Hon-Atsugi and guarantees you a seat (all reserved seating). Seat
reservations can be made next to the Shinjuku Odakyuu station second
floor's ticket gate (there is a special desk for it). Such
reservations can be made even minutes before the train is leaving,
assuming there are available seats.
From Hon-Atsugi (ËܸüÌÚ) to the laboratory, take bus 36 or 37, from
the Hon-Atsugi bus center, bus pole number 7 or 8. It takes about 5
minutes to walk from the train station's east exit to the bus center
and the bus ride takes 20-30 minutes.
Get off at the Tsuushin Kenkyuujo
Mae (ÄÌ¿®¸¦µæ½êÁ°) stop.
From Aikoo-ishida (°¦¹ÃÀÐÅÄ) station which is one stop beyond
Hon-Atsugi, the trip is slightly shorter. Outside of the station's
north exit is a bus stop plaza. Take the 18 or 19 bus for Morinosato
Aoyama (¿¹¤ÎΤÀÄ»³) at bus pole number 4. The trip takes about 20
minutes. You will cross over a freeway and a river. Shortly after
making a sharp right turn you will come to the bus stop for
Shooin
Joshi Tanki Daigaku (¾¾°þ½÷»Òû´üÂç³Ø) which is abbreviated to
Shooin
Joshi Tandai (¾¾°þ½÷»ÒûÂç). The lab is across the road.
Ibaraki:
NTT's Ibaraki labs are located on Japan's Pacific coast about 100 km
north of Tokyo in the village of Tookai-mura (Å쳤¼) which is within
Ibaraki-ken (°ñ¾ë¸©, ken means prefecture). The lab has about 360
researchers, the majority of whom work in opto-electronics. To get
there from Tokyo, take the JR bus from Tokyo station to Mito (¿å¸Í)
station. If there is a problem with the bus to Mito it is possible to
take the train. Although the train can be faster, it is slightly more
complicated as it requires a change at Ueno station if you are coming
from Tokyo Station (it is also more expensive). If you are coming
from Narita Airport take the Keisei line directly to Ueno (there is a
train line that takes a more direct route to Mito, but the timetable
is no better than going to Ueno first). From Ueno take the "Super
Hitachi" train on the Jooban line (¾ïÈØÀþ) to Mito which will take
about 2 hours. To get to Tookai from Mito take the local on the Jooban
line three stops to Tookai station (some of the Super Hitachi trains
stop at Tookai also). From Tookai station to the research lab take a
taxi or a bus to "NTT kenkyuujo."
Yokosuka-shi (²£¿Ü²ì) is located on the peninsula south of
Yokohama-shi (²£ÉÍ»Ô) and Tokyo. If you are coming from Narita
Airport, by far the easiest way to get to the Yokosuka R&D Center
is to catch a JR train on the Yokosuka line (²£¿Ü²ìÀþ) from Narita
Airport to Kurihama (µ×ΤÉͱØ) and then catch a taxi (about
1000-yen); ask the driver to go to the Denki Tsuushin Kenkyuujo
(Åŵ¤ÄÌ¿®¸¦µæ½ê). It is possible to catch the Keisei line (µþÀ®Àþ) to Aoto
(ÀÄÅÖ) and then continue on to Nobi on the Keihin Kyuukoo line and catch
a bus (as outlined below) but if you have any luggage it is much
easier to go straight through to Kurihama and use a taxi.
For commuting from Tokyo, the normal way to get to the Yokosuka R&D
Center is by bus from Nobi (ÌîÈæ) station on the Keihin Kyuukoo line
(µþÉ͵޹ÔÀþ, abbreviated µþµÞ or Keikyuu).
The Keihin Kyuukoo line has
many branches and 4 levels of expresses. The only one that stops at
Nobi is the express bound for Misakiguchi (»°ºê¸ý) which is marked with
µÞ¹Ô (Kyuukoo) in red. This train normally starts at Aoto (XXXu) and
passes through Shinagawa (ÉÊÀî) and Yokohama (²£ÉÍ). If you are
starting at Shinagawa or Yokohama, about 20-30% can be cut off your
travel time by catching the limited express bound for Keikyuu Kurihama
(µþµÞµ×ΤÉÍ) which is marked with ²÷®ÆÃµÞ (Kaisokutokkyuu) in
green. It is about 680-yen and takes about one hour from Shinagawa.
Nobi is the next stop from Kurihama (5 minutes) and there is normally
a train waiting at the station. Hear are the important stops on the
Keihin Kyuukoo line:
Aoto Shinagawa Yokohama Kurihama Nobi Misakiguchi
ÀÄÅÖ ÉÊÀî ²£ÉÍ µ×ΤÉÍ ÌîÈæ »°ºê¸ý
| Limited...........Express |
After getting off the train at Nobi station, you can take a bus that
goes directly to the lab for about 150-yen. There are two buses, the
Denki Tsuushin Kenkyuujo (Åŵ¤ÄÌ¿®¸¦µæ½ê) and the Shimin Byooin
(»Ô̱ɱ¡), both of which leave from the bus stop (the one furthest
from the turnstiles) in the train station's parking lot. The first
bus' final stop is the lab (denki tsuushin kenkyuujo), but the second
bus continues on. It takes about 10 minutes to get to the lab. The
lab is a large metal and glass building perched on top of hill; it's
impossible to miss.
When coming to Japan, you may wish to send some of your belongings on
ahead of you. For this purpose it is best to use an air freight
company or moving company. One important thing to remember is that it
is a long way from Narita Airport to any of the labs, and you should
arrange for delivery of your belongings to the Lab or to your home in
Japan. Some air freight companies don't provide this service, but the
moving companies do. There are many pitfalls in this process. For
example, if you send your belongings too far in advance, you may have
to pay storage costs in Narita, which are not so cheap. Also, be sure
to fill out the "Unaccompanied Baggage Form" (Bessoohin-shinkokusho
ÊÌÁ÷ÉÊ¿½¹ð½ñ) on the airplane or at the customs processing area in
Narita when you are arriving in Japan. The unaccompanied baggage form
is not the same as the embarkation card that you fill out on the
airplane. If you do not fill out the form, your freight will not be
brought through customs, you will have to pay storage charges, and you
will have to write a letter of apology to the Customs Department,
resulting in delay in the delivery of your belongings.
The postal service can also be used for shipment, but the treatment of boxes tends to be rather rough, so be sure to use very sturdy boxes.
There are many air freight companies with contracts for local deliveries in Japan. Favorable experiences have been reported with the following companies:
Airborne Express
"K" Line Air Service Limited
You should get prior approval from the NTT general affairs division before contracting with a specific moving company because some companies may charge more than NTT will reimburse.
(table of contents)
(next chapter)
________________________________________________________________________
HTML markup by TAKADA Toshihiro
