Michelle

Next week I'm off to Japan with my husband and 16 yr old son. We will visiting some temples and shrines in Kyoto & one in Tokyo. I understand its their rainy season and very humid. My question is can my son wear shorts to the temples and shrines? I understand that shorts are frowned upon but <BR>he would be dressed neat and clean.<BR>Also what about dinner. Does he need a jacket? Some of them are in hotels.<BR>This is a trip put on by one of our companies every 2 years for the european and world cup and I find the dress code on their intinerary is always wrong. I'm sick of packing jackets and ties for a one week trip only to find we really didn't need them .<BR>Please any info or tips would greatly be appreciated. Thanks

Florence

Bonjour Michelle,<BR><BR>Don't worry, let your son wear shorts, wear some yourself during the day (long ones), even in temples and shrines. Nobody in Japan expect tourists to wear formal business clothes, and you will see that even some Japanese men wear shorts when travelling for leisure. Wait also until you see what teenagers wear outside of their school uniforms ... ;-)<BR><BR>For dinner in a better kaiseki restaurant, plan to have a nice shirt or blouse with some light trousers or skirt, but a jacket or tie is unnecessary unless you're there for formal business.<BR><BR>What you'll really need is some wipes to clean your feet on rainy days when you have to take off your shoes or sandals before entering temples or houses. You can easily find them in "combini" (convenience stores) like Lawsons, 7/11, etc. <BR><BR>I wish you a very good time there.<BR>

michelle

Thank you so much Florence for the information. What a relief not to have to drag jackets and ties along only to find we didn't need them. I'm quite surprised about the shorts (my son will be happy) although I think I'll stick to longish capris etc. Thanks again!