Subscribe:

Thursday 24 October 2013

Get Trendy Japanese Apparels at High End Prada Store in Incredible Kobe

Picture Source : bit.ly/1aIj7SK

A large number of people still look up to the old Japan because of the rich culture and heritage of this amazing country. Japanese people feel extremely proud of their culture and faith. In fact, Japan is perhaps the lone major country still maintaining its indigenous faith within one location.

There are many other interesting facets of Japan. In the modern times, one thing that is much talked about in Japan is the fashion trends. Yes, Japanese people are extremely fashion conscious and flaunt a rich and unique fashion sense. In fact, the global fashion is influenced a lot by the Japanese fashion trends.

Among the highly fashionable cities, Tokyo and Kyoto are the names that everybody knows of. Kobe is another city synonymous with high end fashion trends. There are several upscale and swanky brands in the posh city.

Picture Source : bit.ly/1aIj7SK

Recently, the top brand Prada came up with its second store in the Kobe. The store was opened in the vibrant Kowa district that is famous for amazing fashion trends and quality products from different companies. So, it is good to see Prada escalating their charisma in this extremely attractive part of Japan.

Kobe is indeed very much popular tourist destinations and the expatriates in the city love the top-class lifestyle in this incredible city. The proximity to several tourist attractions like Kyoto, Himeji, Okayama and Osaka make Kobe an interesting place to visit. One can reach these places easily by shinkansen. Moreover, other tourist destinations within the Kansai region are Awaji Island, Nara and Wakayama (Shirahama, Wakayam Castle, Negoro-ji and Koyasan).

Prada has an enormous catchment area in the Kobe with around 1.5 million populations in this bustling city. However, if you take into account the Keihanshin area comprising of Kobe, Kyoto and Osaka, the prospective customer base expands to approximately 18 million people. The Keihanshin area is unsurprisingly seventh wealthiest zone in the world in terms of purchasing power and wealth. With trendy Japanese fashion clothing available at the store, the Prada store is going to be thronged by the people all the time.

Picture Source : bit.ly/1aIj7SK

Fashion lovers in the Kobe and adjoining areas have gala time with the opening of another Prada store in their neighbourhood. If you are on a tour to Japan and staying nearby the Kobe or Keihanshin area, do not forget to visit the Prada store, where you can purchase high end Japanese apparels and accessories.


Wednesday 23 October 2013

A Guide Book on Shopping at the Markets of Japan

Image Source : bit.ly/1a8O4

It is usually a pleasant experience to shop around the markets in Japan. Usually polite, attentive and friendly sales persons at the stores take extra care to offer highest levels of customer service. The foreign travellers, who cannot speak or understand Japanese, may encounter some problems in conversing with the staffs, though there are a few stores, serving frequently to the foreign customers, have the staffs who can speak English or other foreign languages.

Shopping Hours

Image Source : bit.ly/1a8O4
Generally, department stores in the cities serve from 10 in the morning to 8 in the evening. Small shops and stores may remain open for shorter hours. Most shops and stores remain open on the weekends as well as national holidays, other than January 1st. The smaller independent stores may remain closed for one day in a week or a month but large stores remain open every day.

Greeting

It is very much usual for the store staffs to greet you upon your entrance in the store. They generally greet with the expression "irasshaimase", which means “welcome, please come in.”

Consumption Tax and Duty Free Shopping

Like VAT, GST or sales tax in other countries, Japan has a flat 5 percent consumption tax on every item. The price tag on the goods includes consumption tax and customers are required to pay what they see. The consumption tax rate will increase to 8 percent in April 2014 where an increase to 10 percent is scheduled in October 2015.

There are a few licensed stores in the major cities where foreign tourists can indulge in duty free shopping by making purchasing of more than 10,000 yen.

Foreign travellers should know about the items that may invite import duties in their home countries.

Payment

Image Source : bit.ly/1a8O4
Japan is a cash society and cash is accepted everywhere. One can withdraw Japanese yen through ATMs at post offices and 7-11 convenience stores.

Credit cards are not as universally accepted as cash but one can use it at the major retail stores, department shops and electronics shops. The most widely accepted types of credit cards are Visa, Mastercard, JCB, American Express and Union Pay. On the other hand, traveller’s check can only be accepted at a few major electronic shops and department stores that frequently deal with foreign customers.

Shopping Manners

Put the bill amount onto the tray and the change amount will be returned to you similarly.

Avoid getting indulged in bargaining.

So, now that you are aware of all the shopping tricks, shop freely at the Japanese supermarkets.

Tuesday 8 October 2013

Plan Out a Productive Holiday in Japan

Millions of tourists visit Japan every year. Most of them have to say certain interesting things about the country. Japanese culture and tradition is something that catches attention from every tourist. The unique blend of old and modern culture fairs well in the country.

In spite of modern way of living, Japanese people are still deeply rooted to their ancient culture. Japanese people lead a strict and disciplined lifestyle, which can be experienced everywhere you go in Japan. So, if you are planning a trip to Japan, knowing about Japanese lifestyle can help you plan a better and productive vacation in Japan.

Japanese Lifestyle

Japanese people follow unique and different lifestyle. Take a look at Japanese Lifestyle and what makes it exceptional to the world.

Health and Fitness

Japanese people are very much health conscious and consume healthy and nutritious foods. They are fitness freak and work out a lot to keep their body fit and fine. Lately, a new trend has caught up among the Japanese women. They are going for body suit to keep their body shape and sizes slim and perfect, especially the side portion body.

They have been seen wearing thick padded toe dividers which stretch out between the toes and make them feel good. It also makes their feet thinner and lighter and putting pedicures is so easy with these types of socks.

MOTTAINAI – Green Project in Japan

Image Source : bit.ly/1hz0kM7
Japanese people are quite environment friendly and try to keep the environment clean always. The MOTTAINAI movement is one such step taken to teach people about the benefits of clean and safe environment. Originally started by Wangari Maathai, a Kenyan activist, this movement has become quite popular in Japan.

There are many workshops organised during the event. People take part in this educational and family friendly movement enthusiastically. Kids are taught to make toys using different recycled products.

Weekend Fun and Frolic

Image Source : bit.ly/NYfvDZ
Most Japanese people work hard in the weekdays and spend relaxing weekend at the onsen ryokans. Similar to the weekend span breaks in London, onsen baths are quite popular in Japan. There are many ryokans offering hot spring baths to the weekend revellers.

Most ryokans offer different therapy treatments and lymphatic massages to the visitors. You are also served multi-course dinner at the ryokans.

Healthy Diet

Most Japanese people stay healthy and in shape for a long time. While they follow strict exercise regime for staying fit, their diet chart also contributes a lot. During the warm summer season, most of them take plenty of Kouso in their diet.

Kouso diet helps a lot in shedding oodles of weight by raising metabolism of the body and burns more calories.

There are many other factors contributing to the Japanese lifestyle. If you are planning to stay in Japan even for a short duration, knowing about exclusive Japanese lifestyle can make a happy vacation.