Convenience Stores in Japan

Convenient stores in Japan are extremely convenient. Even the name title is convenient. In Japanese, a convenience store is a conbini. It sounds very close to 'conveni-ence'. Convenience stores come in several brands, Family Mart, Sunkus, Lawson, Asnas, among others.

Convenience stores usually have the following machines:

• Photocopy machine
• ATM 
• A machine that looks like an ATM, but is not. This machine may be used to pay for a variety of goods and services purchased online or at the machine. These include airplane tickets, bus tickets, test fees, international calling cards, among many others. 

Obviously the convenience store also has food, but the variety of food in these small shops is amazing. Almost anything that one would be able to find in a supermarket, can be found in a convenience store, even sushi. 

Convenience stores also have magazine racks; however, half of the magazines are pornographic in nature. That was shocking for me at first, because men sometimes just stand by the racks reading or looking at pictures. They don't seem to think that porn is private. Some of the more x-rated magazines are covered in plastic, but I am still wondering if that is the best place for pornographic content to be sold. 

Convenience stores stay open at all times. Recently there was a super typhoon and all other businesses around my area were closed, except the convenience stores. Which brings me to another point, they are usually several convenience stores located in one area. They truly know what the word 'convenience' means. During the storm, the shops were being run as if it was the most normal day of the year. I visited one during the storm and it brought a sense of normalcy to me, a calm during the storm. I truly love these convenience stores.

Here's a link to another article on Japanese convenience stores: http://japan-magazine.jnto.go.jp/en/1301_cvs.html