Okinawa (Japan): What to Buy

When we travel overseas, we do not usually spend much time on shopping. But... but... Japanese supermarket and post office are just too interesting! My ~~auntie~~ shopping mode was turned on once I stepped into those places in Japan!

You may have heard of the famous shopping street Kokusai-dori (国際通り) in Okinawa. Honestly, I don't find this place attractive for shopping, because the price is more expensive! You can find some of the products in supermarkets!

The shrimp crackers are slightly spicy, but they are very tasty! The children love them!

Okinawa brown sugar is especially popular among the ladies for its high iron and calcium content, and is used for remedy for anemia. I like to drink hot water with Okinawa brown sugar to ease the discomfort during the "monthly event"!

Every time I visit Japan, I would look for Kit Kat! This is the limited edition in Okinawa - beni-imo!

Very convenient way of making toast! Just like using toothpaste! We bought the melon bread spread and garlic butter spread. The melon bread spread is very sweet, it gives the crispy texture like "bo lo bao" after it is baked in oven. I prefer the garlic butter spread, which gives out nice fragrance!

Ok, this one is not for the children. Orion is the popular beer in Okinawa, there is even a beer factory with free factory tour and free beer tasting in Nago. We actually saw Orion beer in some supermarkets in Singapore, but I like this special design which is currently available only in Okinawa!

Okinawa soba in instant form cannot be compared to the freshly prepared ones, but it is quite tasty and filling. Similar to some other Japanese cup noodles, there is a slice of meat inside!

One of the specialty in Okinawa is 35 coffee, which is roasted with weathered coral. I wanted to get the coffee powder, but I accidentally took the cookies instead! Anyway, the cookies are very delicious, the moment we opened the packaging, we could smell the fragrance of coffee!

I was attracted by the packaging! The biscuits come in three flavours - brown sugar, beni-imo and sea salt. Oh well, the words "limited edition" work on me sometimes.

Potato chips with shikuwasa flavour, which tastes like lime, do you dare to try? This was bought from Calbee Plus. More information about Calbee Plus in our post "What to Eat in Okinawa".

Oh yes, there is one more place that you can do your shopping - post office!

We bought a postcard with Shisa and stamps with Sanrio characters! So cute!

We also bought some children's clothes from Uniqlo at AEON Mall Okinawa Rycom (read our experience at this shopping mall). They were not really cheaper than those in Singapore, but some designs were not sold in Singapore.

In Japan, there is a chain of shops that sells baby and children clothing and products called 西松屋 (Nishimatsuya). We heard that the price is affordable, but we didn't manage to explore this shop.

Money-saving tips:
Currently, the consumption tax in Japan is 8%, and the tax-free purchase amount at the same store in a single day is more than 5000 yen. Even consumable items like food and beverages are eligible for tax-free procedure! Take note that the general items and consumable items are considered for tax free separately. Check Japan Tax-free Shop for the list of tax-free shops!

Take note that in order to enjoy tax-free for consumable items, you cannot consume them before you leave Japan. The consumables are packed in a transparent sealed bag like this:

So if you are going to buy a lot of delicious food like what we did, consolidate all your shopping at one tax-free store!

Our Okinawa Travelogue

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Tuesday, January 3, 2017

Okinawa (Japan): What to Buy

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