![]() ![]() Any nearby store became a regular part of her routine. As a temporary expat, she shared the joy I found in the country’s convenience stores (or ‘ konbini’ as they’re referred to in Japan). ![]() Karen Gardiner, a Scottish writer now based in the United States, lived in Tokyo for two years, beginning in 2005. It might not have been as utopic as Murata led me to believe, but even as a foreigner who needed help counting her change, the variety of the goods and the ease of finding a cheap lunch left a lasting impression. I also found myself considering freshly made onigiri rice balls, grab-and-go udon noodles and traditional buns with flavours like pizza, sweet bean and pumpkin cream. However, as someone who has made the mistake of equating fast food with low quality, I was surprised to find that Japanese convenience stores, such as 7-Eleven, Family Mart and Lawson (the three companies that claim the lion’s share of the Japanese market), served as an introduction to local tastes, leading me to skip the basic crisps I’d usually grab at home in favour of sampling flavours like mayonnaise, ume (a fruit in the plum family) and soy sauce. ![]() Although I read the Akutagawa Prize-winning novel before my trip to Japan, the description above struck me as overly romantic. ![]()
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