Konbini and Jidōhanbaiki

I've been doing some writing about food at the moment, and have been discussing the importance of konbini in Japanese culture. I only have chance to talk about them briefly, but they are really important to Japanese culture.

Quite a lot of what I wrote had to be lost in the edit sadly.

Alongside the konbini are the vending machines which are called jidōhanbaiki.

For urban residents in Japan, convenience is important. Life is rushed and hectic and many have long commutes and pressure, and sourcing food quickly is really important.

Konbini are convenience stores. Lawson is one of the chains that can be found in Japan.

Image: Copyright: Simon Hathaway - used with permission

Jidōhanbaiki are found in lots of locations and also sell a much wider range of goods than we are used to seeing 

Image: Copyright: Simon Hathaway - used with permission

I recommend that you try to catch the 2023 Wim Wenders' film 'Perfect Days'. 

This is set in Tokyo. The lead character starts his day by getting several cans from vending machines outside the flat where he lives before heading off for his job cleaning public toilets. He buys canned coffee.

The world's first canned coffee was a Japanese invention dating back to 1969, sold by UCC Ueshima Coffee Co in hot or cold versions.

Food gives rhythm to the narrative of the film.

My review of the film is over on my Geography in/on Film blog - check it out if you haven't already - there are hundreds of posts on the blog.

Lunch is made up of sandwiches - an American influence, eaten in a park under a tree.

The day ends at a fast food joint.

There are links to wabi-sabi: the imperfect beauty of things.

The vending machines vary regionally and also seasonally in their contents. They even include underwear. They also succeed because of Japan's low crime rate which means they would rarely be vandalised in the same way as they might be in other locations.

This MONOCLE piece explores the infrastructure behind the vending machines, which can be found throughout Japan.

There are apparently over 4 million of them, and they can be found on almost every street corner...

More on them in another blog post which is in preparation. I think there's almost a geography related activity here that could be put together with a cultural geography basis.