How can I convince my mom to let me go to Japan alone?

Question:

I am currently 17 years old, but this trip won't happen for about a year. I've been asking my mom for many years now if I could go via People to People or a similar program. She finally said that I could go, since I'm graduating high school this year and she can't really find any more reasons to say no. She also told me that I can't go through People to People since it's so expensive and that I have to pay for it myself.

Not a problem. It's cheaper to go independently, about $3,000 so. Also, I just got my nurse aide license and will be working on Saturdays or Sundays and during holiday breaks. If I come up short, depending on the amount, my grandparents may provide the remainder. Sounds great, right? There's a catch, someone has to go with me.

No one on my mom's side is willing to go (they dislike most cultures and traveling) and I don't trust anyone on my dad's side (alcohol and substance abusers, racists, massive smokers/I am allergic to cigarette smoke). I've asked two of my three friends that would want to go. My first friend that I asked said that her mom doesn't want her to go anywhere unless it's through People to People, and the other has financial problems and wouldn't quite be 18 when we went. I could ask my third friend, but she is a very out-of-the-closet lesbian, which I don't have a problem with most of the time, but she "likes" me in that way, and I don't think I could spend ten days sharing a room with her.

I'm out of ideas on who to ask. I went so far as to ask my Health Technologies teacher, who would love to go, but has two kids in college and can't afford to. My only other option is to try and convince my mom to let me go by myself. I'm at the top of my class (like, salutatorian), I'm not much of a risk-taker and I'm far from sexually active (the only time I've seen male genitalia was during my nurse aide training, ha ha). Her biggest concerns are that I can't straighten my hair myself (I have a severe phobia of being burned), I have a fairly bad case of IBS, and I'm a bit on the lazy side (this is actually a type of mild depression that I've had for most of my life that I inherited from my father).

This is where you guys come into the picture. How can I convince my mom to let me go by myself?

P.S. I apologize for such a long backstory/rant.

Answer:

How long do you plan to stay ? It will be $1,200 - $1,500 just for airfare. $3,000 will get you a weeks stay there, maybe a little more.
Tell your mum you need to be more independent. Japan is one of the safest countries in the world to visit.