P.S. There are lots of other little things that help a lot. Like - for example - buying subway passes with set amounts of yen on them as opposed to figuring out the cost of every single ride (we used them in 2006 and I assume they still exist).

Also - if you will be in Kyoto (I see that you're staying in Japan for 2 weeks) - I can highly recommend Mr. Doi:

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/japan...ide-kyoto.html

At or near the end of a 2 week trip - you will probably be pretty tired. And the subway system in Kyoto is somewhat limited. Robyn