|
Part II: Getting Into JR
Station
Did you make it out of the airport OK?
Good! Well, the next step of your adventure
is to buy your tickets, and then get into the JR Train Station.
Follow the map below:
 |
|
So, once you come out of the Airport you will see the causeway. Go
across the causway all the way. The area that you will arrive at will be
the train stations that come into Kansai Airport. |
 |
| If
you look to your left, you will see the JR "Kippu Uriba" (Ticket
Center). This is where you want to go to buy your tickets to take the JR
trains to Fukui. |
 |
| Go
into the JR Ticket Center and line up. When it gets to your turn, tell
the person sitting there the following:
"Two reserved, non-smoking tickets to Fukui
Station, please."
Speak slowly and clearly. Likely he will
be sweating. Listen hard for his answer because it may not make too much
sense to you if you are not used to Japanese English. Try hard because
now you are in Japan and the language here is Japanese. YOU are the
foreigner, and should never expect everyone to speak your language. You
can add, "The next available train, please." if you like. |
 |
|
Now you have your tickets. You should actually have three tickets. One
ticket will have a lot of writing on it (see the next photo). This is
the general ticket that is required from the start to the end of your
destination. You will also have two other tickets because you have to
ride two trains: One from KIX to Shin-Osaka, and the other one from
Shin-Osaka to Fukui. As you can see above (this ticket is from
Shin-Osaka to Takefu, not Fukui, but don't worry, your ticket will be
for FUKUI), this is how you read the ticket. You can tell exactly what
time the trains will leave and arrive, where your seat is, and the
name/number of the train itself. If you get confused, you can always
ask. |
 |
|
This is the ticket that you will need to put in the turnstiles to get
into the JR Station. You have three tickets, but you only need to put
one in. The machine will suck in the ticket, the gate will open and the
ticket will come up a few steps ahead in the top of the machine. Take
the ticket and walk through the gate with your luggage. You can push a
cart through here if you like. Keep your tickets handy for when you get
on the train below. |
 |
|
Once you have your tickets, go out of the JR Ticket Center and look
straight ahead. You will see two entries. One is the JR Entry, and the
other is the Nankai Entry. Do NOT take this Nankai Entry. See the big
XXX over this photograph? Yes, it means exactly that: DO NOT ENTER. Got
it? Because if you DO enter, and wind up somewhere in Siberia, I am not
coming to get you. |
 |
|
Just so that you know, THIS is the blue JR entry that you will be going
through. See the guy lugging his suitcase and picking up his ticket as
he goes through the turnstile? You will do the same, one person at a
time. |
 |
|
Once you are through, you have to leave your cart and start to pull your
luggage. Luckily, there is an escalator right here to your right. Simply
go around this blue sign and down the escalator. You can also see here
where the cars will be stopping. So if your ticket says you are in Car
No. 1-3, you can go down the escalator straight ahead. It doesn't matter
though, and if you want to follow this map to the "t", turn right here
and go down the escalator. |
 |
|
Now you are on your way down the escalator, to the platform where the
Haruka will come and pick you up. Once you get to the bottom here, turn
right. See where people are lined up down there? They are getting on the
train. |
 |
|
Here is the waiting room for the train. If you don't want to hang around
outside and enjoy the brisk air, stretching your bum muscles after
nearly 15 hours flying and bussing, and waiting, then you can go inside
and sit down again. But remember: you will be sitting for the next three
hours or so (one hour, change, two + hours) on a train again so ... The
orange arrow here shows you that the Haruka is arriving. It is a nice
train, so enjoy the ride. |
OK, do you have that pretty much figured out?
Then next you want to get on the Haruka Limited Express, bound for Shin
Osaka Station:
Part Three:
Getting on the Haruka Express for Shin Osaka
Previous Steps (for review purposes):
Part One: Getting
Out of Kansai Airport
Cam Switzer
October 4th, 2003
|