When I tried to find more information about the JRail pass from my travel agent, this is what I found -
JRail pass is a must for a tourist visiting Japan. At the cost of one Shinkansen (bullet train) ticket you can travel for the entire week, using any form of public transport including Shinkansen. This is unbelievably cheap. The pass can be used only by a person who is visiting Japan on a tourist Visa. You need to buy a voucher from TCI, and the voucher can be exchanged for a pass at designated train stations in Japan. The pass cannot be purchased after you enter Japan, you must buy it in India.
Many things related to the JRail pass are still valid, except that now it is available from many sources. You can buy online, or from multiple travel agents in India, or from specific locations after entering Japan.
Anyways, I called up TCI office in Pune, and found out that it is a simple process, just takes few minutes, you can pay across the counter and buy once you show your passport and valid Japan Visa. Oh ok, that means I need to wait till I have the visa in hand.
My departure was scheduled on Monday afternoon 3 PM. I went to the TCI office on Friday, just after receiving the Visa in hand. The office was closed, there was nobody to be seen. It was the middle of the day, so I was not expecting this. After a few minutes a security guard showed up. “Everyone in the office including the office manager are in Goa for a company event. The office will be closed today and tomorrow. The earliest you can find anybody is on Monday morning.” It was very obvious from his tone of voice that he was quite disgruntled as everyone other than him was enjoying in Goa, and he was in office on duty.
The nearest other office was in Nariman Point in Mumbai. “Is the office in Mumbai open?” I asked the guard. “It should be. I can’t say for sure, but the Goa event is only for the Pune office.” At least there was a ray of hope. There was no way I could have reached the Mumbai office on the same day.
“We need to reach the airport by noon on Monday, if we could reach the Mumbai office early in the morning on Monday, then we can buy the voucher and go to the airport directly from there.” I discussed it with Varsha. At that time travelling to Mumbai was not as easy, and a trip on Saturday to buy the pass would have meant loss of a day. We needed some time to finish the packing of bags, including some last minute purchases.
Comfortably by Sunday evening, we reached my in-laws place in Thane. “I can come with you to the TCI office in case you need any help.” My father in law offered to help. “Also let me know if you need any cash, I can arrange.” I saw no need to trouble him, he would have to take a day off from office for such a simple thing. I thanked him and politely refused his help.
Next day morning we picked up our bags and reached the TCI office before the office was open. We were greeted nicely by a security guard, and were asked to wait till the counter opens. The office was cozy and we relaxed while we waited. I was the first customer to be attended when the counter opened.
I showed our passports and the visas. “Yes, this is perfect. Let me fetch the JRail voucher book. How are you going to pay? It will be twenty seven thousand and something.”
“By personal check” was my prompt answer.
“We don’t accept personal checks, we accept only cash or bank drafts.” I could smell the trouble brewing.
I was carrying my Citibank credit card. At that time credit cards were not common in India, and I was one of the privileged few to have one.
“We don’t accept a credit card either.” That was a shock when I showed her the card. Today, nobody will believe this; but at that time credit cards were not very common.
“I can issue you a voucher just in a few minutes after you pay the cash. Please proceed to the cash counter and pay.”
There was no way I could have paid that much cash. I was in Mumbai, a different city and the avenues were limited. My father in law must have left his house for his office, and it was not possible to connect with him till he reached his office. There were no cell phones. He was very resourceful, and he could have arranged for cash, but there was not enough time. I regretted denying his offer yesterday.
If I had travelled to Japan without a JRail pass, the tour would have been a waste of time.
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