Cheap International Flights

[PrettyFlyforaChiGuy]

I love this post almost as much as I love your goal of finding a good hamburger in Beijing.   I have a hard time believing you... that is like a needle in a haystack - or more difficult.    I'm impressed.  

I actually got the Chase Sapphire card years ago and like it for the most part.   I would say it's the best one unless you are 100% certain that you are a one-airline type of person.     Since I fly United/Star Alliance almost exclusively, in hindsight, I wish I would have gotten theirs, but since you can convert the Chase points, it doesn't matter.  

My son did a manga hostel when I took him to Tokyo.   I was on a business trip so we stayed in my company-sponsored hotel for a few days and then I left and he stayed on in Japan to get a real feel for it.   He absolutely loved the hostel vibe and met the coolest people.  He ate almost exclusively at the ubiquitous conveniemce stores and saved a ton of money and really seemed to enjoy the novelty of it.

That Chase line is still my normal-use card since it has no foreign transaction fees and racks up points all the time. I used the Delta Amex card for a while but cancelled it, and still have the Citi AAdvantage as a back-up. I've still never even redeemed any of the Chase points, so not sure about the ease of it. I just appreciate that there are these avenues for people to rack up rewards or points.

I think I only ever stayed at the Keio for an orientation meeting, since manga cafes were good value, with free food, drinks, and entertainment. Capsule hotels are also great, if you've always wanted to sleep in a coffin. I still miss the daily convenience store oden. Hopefully I'll be back soon, since I kind of came of age there. Not as easy to be flexible as we get older though.