So today was the trip to the hundred yen store. It is in Funabashi and is the largest and most comprehensive one I have been in in Tokyo. The concept is the same as a dollar store in the USA or a pound shop in the UK, but not really. A hundred yen shop is filled with tons of neat and incredible stuff and 99% of it costs 105 yen including tax. There are a few items that are more, but are still really good deals. So here is a list of my random finds today:
1 large basket for magazines
4 packs of really long birthday candles
1 of those little things that shave sweaters
2 plastic boxes to hold all the random cds for my computer
2 plastic storage containers for the kitchen
2 Japanese fans (one is really quite ugly, but you can’t see tthem before you buy them)
8 red magnets to hold things up on white boards
1 Hello Kitty bandaid holder
1 bread basket
2 packs of cupcake papers
1 backscrubbing brush
5 blue and white batik placemats
1 package elastic
4 coasters
2 minature bags of charcoal (someone told me it would take the odor out of an antique chest I have)
And now as I look at all this stuff I wonder if I really need it. Okay, some of it is important, but really I could have lived without most of it. The trip always sounds fun and we always have a good time talking on the way there. The train ride is about an hour and we talk and laugh. It is fun to look at all the “stuff” when you get there and we always go to the same Tempura shop after to eat. However, by the time I get back on the hot crowded train I am just ready to be home. The ride seems to take forever and no one feels much like talking and I always wonder why I go again. For me it’s a day out and being with friends and it’s definitely not the shopping. I hate shopping!!!!
I think that all the things you found were wonderful. I love the dollar store and more than that I just love markets. Even if you think you didn’t need all of that stuff, you’re right you got to make a day of it. When we come….we will go and it will be glorious!