Nara-ken Tourist Traps

Souvenir Shop Suckers

by phoebelosophy

I've already mentioned the beauty of the massive Great Buddha statue in Nara, but I haven't mentioned the handful of tourist shops conveniently set up along the path to the temple.These 'souvenir shops' sell everything from Japanese wall hangings to mobile phone accessories. The problem is that they are so over-priced and sell such flimsy goods, it's really not worth the money!Of course, Japan is an expensive country, but that doesn't mean you have to blow all your cash on imitation samurai swords. There are a lot of other places where you can buy good-quality souvenirs for the same price, or sometimes cheaper. If you simply MUST buy something at one of these tourist shops (you may not have time to visit other places), then compare each shop and try to find the cheapest out of the lot (they sell a lot of the same stuff).Bargaining is not so popular, so what you see is what you pay....