貯金したいなら商店街！

日本の生活について色々なことを皆に紹介したかったですが、今回は自分にとって欠かせない所を皆に伝えたいと思います。私が住んでいる横浜国立大学の留学生寮は弘明寺という場所にあります。最初に引っ越した時に弘明寺という街の印象はあまり良くなかったです。なぜかというと、寮は大学から遠くて、毎日大学まで通うのは40分ほどかかってしまいます。そして電車に乗らなければいけませんので、１ヶ月の交通費も自分で払い、結構高くなるのです（皆さんは弘明寺に住むことになったら、定期券を買うことをお勧めします）。朝早めに授業がある場合もありますが、その日は満員電車のせいで特にきついです。

しかし、弘明寺には利点もあります。その中の一つは皆に紹介したい商店街です。商店街というのは昔から日本にある商店が建ち並んでいる通りのことです。市場のような雰囲気があり、伝統的な日本文化を経験したいなら商店街はいいと思います。場所によって商店街は様々に違いますが、弘明寺の商店街には服屋さん、レストラン、食料品店、スーパーなど色々な店があります。弘明寺駅と大学の寮の近くにありますので、すごく便利です。商店街の魅力といえば、デパートより温かい雰囲気で色々な人と関わる機会です。商店街に行ったら、自分がもっと日本人のコミュニティに馴染めていると感じると思います。子供から高校生、お年寄りまで、誰でも商店街に行きますので、街の人々と交流するチャンスに違いないです。そして、ちょっと高級なケーキ屋さんから私が良く行っているダイソーまで、弘明寺の商店街なら何でも買えると思います。日本の料理の様々な種類を試し、食べ歩きながら買い物することもできます。個人的に弘明寺の商店街は特に印象的です。商店街の長い通りを通したら終わりにお寺が建てられていて、お寺に入ったら何回も優しく迎えられて、話しかけられたことがあります。そして、祭りの時にも雰囲気がワイワイになり、イルミネーションでとても綺麗です。

皆さんは日本に来たら、どうやって安く生活できるのか、貯金しながら生活して行きたいと思っている人は多くいると思いますが、そのために商店街は役に立ちます。残念ながら、最近はデパートの数が増えているに連れて、商店街の数は減っている一方ですが、商店街はまだ日本全国にありますので、機会があったらぜひ行って見てください。

Hello! My name is Cara and I am currently studying at Yokohama National University. My dorm is located in a small town called Gumyouji situated on the blue line (the main subway line that runs through Yokohama) and is about a 20 minute train journey then a 20 minute walk from the University. Gumyouji is named after its temple which is situated a short walk from the station. It is a lively residential area with an almost international atmosphere due to the two large dorms for exchange students situated near the centre and the international school nearby. There are no large department stores in Gumyouji unless you don’t mind taking a walk so if you want to go department store shopping it is better to make a small trip to the next station over - Kamiooka.

I wasn’t sure which aspect of Japanese life to introduce at first, but decided I wanted to talk about somewhere which has become almost essential to my everyday life in Gumyouji. That place is the 商店街（しょうてんがい）. Before I came to Japan I didn’t know much about 商店街 as, though I had visited one before, I had never lived next door to one for a long period of time. Being extremely convenient (the 商店街 is 5 minutes tops from the dorm and is right across from Gumyouji Station), I have become happily dependant on it for the largest part of my shopping. I think the closest translation of 商店街 in English is ‘shopping street’ which doesn’t really explain much so I will try to describe it in a bit more detail. As you can see from the picture below, 商店街is a long street with local shops lined up running along either side. The atmosphere is a bit like a street market with lots of hustle and bustle but there are also various chain stores and a few expensive shops too, so it has a bit of everything. There is not much need to go shopping elsewhere when you can almost always find what you are looking for among the vast array of shops.

Although, sadly, 商店街 numbers are actually decreasing as demand for department stores and convenience stores increases, there are still many 商店街 throughout Yokohama and all across Japan so I am sure you will come across them whilst you are here. For me, the main reason the 商店街 is so useful is it helps me economise. After arriving in Japan, one of the things I struggled with most was saving money. Luckily I found that after a while of shopping there, I could compare the prices of the various supermarkets and found an excellent and easy way to save money. Likewise, it is very easy to find and buy fresh produce at a low price (Frequenting Daiso also helps!). You can see the international influence on the town by the variety of different restaurants in the 商店街. For example, there is Malaysian, Vietnamese, Chinese, mainly Asian restaurants which are scattered between French bakeries and various different coffee shops. As I said before, the Gumyouji temple is situated at the very end of the 商店街 which greatly contributes to the atmosphere. Though I pass it often, I’ve visited and been inside Gumyouji temple twice and both times I was welcomed warmly and spoken to in Japanese. The atmosphere in the temple and the 商店街 is very warm and shopping there makes you feel like you are part of the community, especially as you get to know people working in different shops. I highly recommend the 商店街 as a place to shop and economise, have fun, get to know Japanese people and experience Japanese traditions and culture.