All-A-Dollar, Japanese Style

So I'd been told, weeks before I got out here, that there were places like All-a-Dollar, called Daiso, or Hyaku-en Shops. For the first few weeks I would search google maps to see if I could find some close ones.  But the whole you're-in-japan-so-type-japanese issue popped up, and with my limited skills I could only find one that was....quite far.

Anywho I decided to give it another whack today.  Google mapped again, and this time, long story short, I found 2 by sheer dumb luck. I've been out here long enough now that I'm not a mess of anxiety every time I venture somewhere new.  My Kyoto trip pretty much killed that obstacle.  :-)        I also discovered a subway station a block away from Daiso.  So if I don't want to use the bus to get to Akaike, I can bike to Tokushige station.

Biking around isn't as scary anymore either.  A big reason is that I'm getting used to the opposite direction the cars drive over here, and it's very quiet so you can hear cars coming your way.  My area is a beautiful place to bike around. I will take photos next time and I'll do a little post on Japanese Suburbia. I really just need to carry my camera around all the time. Some of the English phrases you see around town or in stores makes me laugh my head off. 


The dollar stores here are sooooooo much better than the ones in America.  By....a lot.  I'm tempted to buy a bunch of dishware there.  It's all so pretty, and really nicely made!  They had so much stuff, and for the most part it was all really nice. They didn't sell clothes like shirts, coats & pants.  They sold socks and stuff. I had an agenda there, so I tried not to be reckless. But I did end up spending like $5 on stuff I'm mailing to nieces & nephews.

Oh, and I've realized that if I notice something made with green tea, and I haven't tried it, I end up buying it.  I LOVE green tea.  I liked it before I moved out here, but now I lurv it ha ha.  My favorite treat out here  are Green Tea flavored Kit Kats. Soooooo good.  Honestly everything green tea flavored has been delicious.  At Daiso I found some green tea oreos, so I tried those out.  Good, but the kit kats are better.

 Oh, the fries are from....a long story.  They ended up with me. They are like chips but in fry  form.  Not oily at all.  It's strange only because I'm used to hot fries from a drive through window.  I was told these are healthier than America chips.

The section that has things like chips (chips that few Americans have ever seen. I'm not into trying them) also has....what do they call them....ok well they are dried, "fish chips".  Imagine a little silver fish half the size of your pinky, dried, and stuffed into a little bag with 50 others.  That adventurous side of me thought about trying some, but honestly, I have limits ha ha.  I'll stick with the octopus.

My agenda at the store was to find 3 things.  Shower curtain, drain bucket, and acrylic paint. I found all of them!  I have been taking baths in a half-size tub for 2 months, so trust me I am THRILLED to get to stand up now!  And my artsy side was itching for more than just crayons to illustrate some stuff out here.

I also bought a few things that had me going, "What the crap is this?"

"Zukan Children" Magnet Collection Gum.  It gets weirder.

I laughed so hard when I opened this. WTF?

And the last surprise I got was after I paid.  They gave me a plastic bag.  I was not expecting this, because (unless it's a small little convenience store) you have to bring your own bags when you go shopping.  So this was a shock!