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ICOCA 10 years anniversary and some travel tips

Fri, November 1, 2013, by Muza-chan

Even if, after all these years, I am used to all the Japanese train tickets, I still prefer using a smart card. Besides the worry-free usage, without calculating the price and the distance traveled, you also avoid the small queues at the ticket vending machines. And when traveling outside the tourist areas, where the English signage becomes scarce, studying the local ticketing system may not be your idea of fun…

The best know Japanese smart card is SUICA, launched 12 years ago by the JR East. The JR West version is called ICOCA and it was launched… 10 years ago today! ICOCA is always impersonated by its mascot Ico the Platypus (Kamonohashi no Iko-chan in Japanese), thus being very easy to spot its charging stations - like in the billboard from today’s photo.

So, Happy Anniversary Iko-chan, and for more travel tips, I recommend you to visit the Travel section of the new GaijinPot website.

Click on photo for higher resolution:
JR West smart card, ICOCA
JR West smart card, ICOCA
If you want to license my photos for commercial use, please contact me

EXIF Info:

Nikon D90
Lens: VR 18-55mm F/3.5-5.6G
Focal Length: 24mm
Aperture: F/5.6
Shutter Speed: 1/25s
ISO Sensitivity: ISO 400
Traditional Japanese clothing, Taiko-musubi knots
Yesterday’s Japan Photo:

Traditional Japanese clothing, Taiko-musubi knots



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