April 03, 2003
So many choices!
At the conbini (convenient store) downstairs, they have an insane number of choices when it comes to drinks. In addition to the American carbonated drinks (which I don't like), I counted 5 types of mineral water, 8 types of juices, and 14 types of tea (including green, oolong, jasmine, and English)! There are 5 types of supplement drinks. These are kind of like sports drinks - close to water, but with electrolytes and such added in - but they are marketed more for surviving city life rather than for sports. These drinks are supposed to help city people who are stressed, don't eat well, and drink too much alcohol. I actually kind of like these drinks. Today I bought "Hogusu supli" which means a supplement that will loosen/relax my body. It contains vinegar of various fruits. A bit too sweet for me. I like Dakara ("because" and a play on the word for body) the best.
"Conbini" .. I love going to them. There are so many in Tokyo. 7Eleven, AM/PM, Lawson, MiniStop, Poplar, Circle K, FamilyMart, SunKus .. what else?
The AminoSuppli is my personal fav. I never seen Hogusu supli .. but I can say I'm one of the new city dwellers that needs the suppli drinks after the hangovers. Let's blog the convenience stores! Like UltraBob mentioned blogging the local surroundings.
I used to be addicted to the lychee flavoured supli...of course they stopped making that one :-(
Posted by: gomichild at April 3, 2003 08:29 PMMy favorite quote from Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure... "Strange things are afoot at the Circle K"
Posted by: Shaun at April 4, 2003 12:32 AMHi Mie!
I just found your site by accident...well actually I was really suppose to be studying for finals but got really bored so I started jumping from blog to blog. And I stayed and read your blog for a very long time b/c it's soo cute! I like your pictures -- they're random, colourful, & cartoony! I'll be sure to come back soon.
BTW do they have guava juice? I know that sounds weird but it's my new fave drink :)
~Shalene~
Posted by: Shalene at April 4, 2003 08:29 AMI know what you mean. I think Tokyo would collapse if all conbinis were to disappear. Conbini's sell everything! I'm working on my neighborhood keitai photo shoot for Ultra Bob's project, but I'm actually gonna try and avoid conbini...precisely b/c they are everywhere.
My favorite drink used to be milk jasmine tea. Yeah, at first I thought it was a horrible idea, but it was good. Can't find it anymore...It's a total marketing gimmick...to make a great drink then stop it. Cuz then we keep going back again and again hoping to find it. Grrrr.
Hi Shalene,
Welcome. Hope I didn't mess up your finals! Thanks for the compliments. Yes, you can buy guava juice here but more at major supermarkets or foreign goods stores. I love guava juice.mmmm.
Have you noticed how often the Japanese manufacturers bring out new drink flavours?
Is this because the Japanese innately love new things? (the argument some of my Japanese friends use)
Or possibly because the manufacturers have no idea what their customers really want, so are kind of shooting in the dark?
Or a mix of both?
Anyway, I think the 'turnover' of drinks here is phenomenal - every time I go to a conbini, the drink I am looking for has gone!
Dakara is also my favorite, and the one I buy all the time.
As for combinis, I think they act as a substitute to the lack of huge kitchen space that you see in most dwellings. Who needs a huge fridge in your home when you have a few combinis a few seconds away that act as gigantic fridges!
Posted by: Jean at April 5, 2003 10:40 AM