Walking along Koshinzuka Street is like taking a step back in time. This area is sometimes called “the grandma and grandpa’s Harajuku” because it sells goods geared toward the over-60 set and lots of stuff that hasn’t been available in the rest of Tokyo for years. The best time to go is on days that end in 4 (the 4th, 14th and 24th of each month) because all the usual shops are joined by street vendors selling stuff like cricket snacks, seaweed by the bale, and other only-in-Japan delights.
Every time I walk down the Koshinzuka Shopping Street I see something I’ve never seen before. It’s the go-to place to shop for big red underwear, squicky snacks & goods from a bygone era. There’s even a nice man who mixes custom-blended 7-pepper (shichimi) spice.
There are shops selling old-fashioned mochi sweets and sweet potato candy, as well as obscure household goods you may have to guess what it’s used for! It’s the only place I know to buy your own custom-carved bamboo ear cleaner, made while you wait.
Or how about some big red choners? It’s good luck to wear red next to your skin, so these are a popular gift for people turning sixty (hence the styles tending toward bright red underwear styled for, um, mature men and women). They’re worth the price just to get the instructions that go with them.
If you’re dying to stock up on health tea made from dried poisonous snakes, the nice man at the dried snake store will blend it while you wait. (sometimes he sets up a stand outside on market days, but you can always go into the store near the community center to get your poisonous snake fix.)
There’ a public bath house offering cedar shaving enzyme baths
and if you know anybody who needs a poke bonnet and matching traditional Japanese farmer pants (and they’re less than 160cm tall) you’ll be spoiled for choice.
Don’t forget to stop and make an offering at the temple with the Togenuki Jizo figure, to cure all your aches and pains or get a healing souvenir for an ailing loved one back home.
On every day that ends in 4 (the 4th, 14th and 24th of each month), street vendors join the usual stores selling old-fashioned merchandise, just like they have for centuries.
These sellers deal in some of the more obscure vintage goods. Those dark snacks in the middle? Sweet & salty crickets.
Costumed Kewpie dolls and other traditional toys for grandchildren? Check.
On market days, even the little side street next to the temple is lined with sellers, like those dealing in seasonal bonsai and other Japanese plants. These miniature plum trees go on sale in February.
And before you go, do’t miss your chance to take a selfie with the weirdest photo op in all of Tokyo: the Honorable Duck Butt of Sugamo
(The Koshinzuka area’s mascot is a duck called Sugamon, hence the, er, memorable publicity idea…)
Koshinzuka Street Market
Street market days: Every month on the 4th, 14th, and 24th
Admission: Free
Note: Vendors change seasonally, and some stores and market stalls don’t open until 12:00. The best way to enjoy this combination old-fashioned shopping street and flea market is without particular expectations, but eyes wide open for surprising finds!
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And here are the other places I take my friends when they come to town
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Jonelle Patrick writes novels set in Japan, produces the monthly e-magazine Japanagram, and blogs at Only In Japan and The Tokyo Guide I Wish I’d Had
Jonelle Patrick writes about Japan 