Transportation - Japan Railway Lines

Rail transport in Japan is a major means of passenger transport, especially for mass and high-speed travel between major cities and for commuter transport in metropolitan areas. 
Japanese public transportation is characterized by its punctuality, its superb service and large crowds of people using it. 

(I took this shot from the 25th floor of a famous building near the airport of Japan (KIX) and it simply identifies the interests to visit and witness the culture of this country. Starting from cherry blossoms, to shrines and temples, historic sites and castles, snow destinations to autumn colors, up to their festivals and beaches. There are lot to discover actually. But how can you get there?)


According to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rail_transport_in_Japan

Rail transport services in Japan are provided by more than 100 private companies, including
Six Japan Railways Group (JR) regional companies (state owned until 1987) which provide passenger services to most parts of Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu;
The nationwide JR freight company; and
16 major regional companies which provide railway services as part of their corporate operations. There are also dozens of smaller local private railways.
Many of the private rail companies rank among the top corporations in the country. Railways were built by private corporations developing integrated communities along the railway lines, allowing them to achieve profitability by diversifying into real estate, retail, and numerous other businesses.[1] Regional governments, and companies funded jointly by regional governments and private companies, also provide rail service.

The following 16 companies are classified as the major private railways and are operating 2,870.1 kilometers of railways. In a one-year period from April 2009, a total of 9.46 billion passengers (118 billion passenger kilometers) traveled on these major railways.

Tobu Railway
Seibu Railway
Keisei Electric Railway
Keio Corporation
Odakyu Electric Railway
Tokyu Corporation
Keikyu Corporation
Tokyo Metro
Sagami Railway
Nagoya Railroad
Kintetsu Railway
Nankai Electric Railway
Keihan Electric Railway
Hankyu Corporation
Hanshin Electric Railway
Nishi-Nippon Railroad

and near our house, it's NANKAI Railway.

What I'm really amazed in Japan is aside from updates of the weather, TRAINS are always on TIME. You will notice that most of the people here are rushing just to reach their train.

But dont worry my friends, trains pass by every after 10 or 15 mins depending on the railway. You will never get lost of your train because they have numbers and location which to ride for. But always remember that some trains stop at every station and some does not. Like they have their designated areas.

Eric has this PHONE APP on how to reach the train on time and he taught me how to use it.
In Manila, Philippines, I used to ride UBER and its so convenient for me
and I try to make sure not to meet people out during peak hours due to TRAFFIC is everywhere.

I can see the difference now how transportation works between Manila and Japan.
Little by little, I already figured out how convenient railway systems are in Japan compare Manila.
But I find it so difficult that in Japan transfer from Local to Fast train is so tiring. So you need a lot of patience.

How about BAD WEATHER?

They even have updates inside the train and this is very good for passengers when there's bad weather in the country. I experienced this once when I need to rush an item for Eric because he is working in the airport. Weather is not so good in JAPAN if there's STRONG WIND. There are times that they need to stop the service of the train. But tourists, don't worry, they can give substitutions like bus service to transfer you to the airport.

Namba Walk is a popular underground shopping in the center of Minami. It used to be called the TOWN OF RAINBOW until it was renovted in 1994. The area is divided into 3 different zones but don't worry my friends, tourists will never get lost in this underground city. There are numbers and letters that you can easily follow. Namba walk has arts, music, mini waterfront plus the excellent access to SUBWAY STATIONS going back to our home is easy especially KANSAI AIRPORT.

You will never get bored when you ride their train (i mean, it's convenient - walang siksikan) because aside from the good colors of the seats and nice views, it is relaxing. It also has priority seats for elderly people, pregnant women and parents with children.

Japan is very mountainous country reason they have lots of tunnels which has spent a lot of infrastructure over a long period of time. 

Another way of transportation in Japan, is riding their BUS. There are different ticketing systems depending on the company and recognizing the stop that you want to get off can be challenging.
Some common points to remember how to use Local Bus.

1. Eric and I are using IC card to pay the fare. It's the same thing like we have in Manila (beep card)
2. If you ride their local bus, all you need is tap your card against the sensor.
3. A display above the driver shows the next stop and the fares for that stop in yen. To determine your fare, match the number on your ticket with the number and fare on the display. If you use an IC card, then you do not have to worry about this.
4. When your stop is approaching, press one of the buttons on the wall to signal the driver that you wish to get off at the next stop.
5. When getting off, all we need is tap our card again the near the driver.