Shotengai [商店街[しょうてんがい]] - a street which has a concentration of shops and restaurants which is usually located near a train station. A shotengai typically includes:-
- supermarkets and grocery shops
- restaurants, cafes and kissaten
- izakaya
- pachinko parlors
- pharmacies
- medical clinics
- massage parlors
- barber shops
- game centers
- bakeries
- post offices
- book shops
- clothes shops
- convenience stores
- koban (police boxes)
Shotengai are a great place to visit to catch a slice of life in Japan. Shotengai are usually located around train stations near residential areas so the people you see would be folks going about their daily life - as opposed to seeing office wo/men grab lunch or dinner.
The first photo is taken in my hood - this is the Palm shopping arcade - the longest indoor shotengai in Tokyo. Get off at Musashikoyama station [武蔵小山駅] and you will be right at the entrance. Ping me on Twitter before 11:30 AM and if I'm free we can go for lunch ^^;
The following photos taken of Shotengai all around Tokyo.
Shotengai are one of the nicest things I love about Japan - they have such a warm fuzzy peaceful feeling to them - and convenient to grab stuff too ^^;
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