But, I've been here so long that I'm used to just about everything I see...
Excepting, recently, signs that the economy is really tanking are popping up everywhere.
Here is the sign for a drinking establishment near Suitengumae Station on the Hanzomon Line that is advertising "All You Can Drink" service for ¥900 for women (USD about $10.80) and ¥1,300 for men (about USD $15.60).
That's unreal!
At just about any decent place in Tokyo, one drink is about ¥800 ~ ¥1,000 (about $9.60 ~ $12.00 USD). I had never seen prices this low. I took a closer look at the poster and saw that they had lowered the price already 3 times (underneath the 1300 yen mark was a paper that said 1500 and, below that, was another one that said 1,700!)
Dirt cheap! You say?
Well, not 50 meters walk down the street, I came across this sign for "Tachigui soba" (stand up soba restaurant) that was advertising their standard soba bowl for ¥200 (about $2.40 USD)!!!
Consider this: How many places can you walk into and have a meal for $2.40? Also consider that, at a convenience store in Tokyo, one Cup O Noodles costs ¥138 (about USD $1.56!)
How could they possibly stay in business!?
Standard bowl of soba: ¥200. I wonder
if they charge extra for sliced green onions?
More signs that the economy, in spite of rosy government figures, has really taken a turn for the worse.
You want to know why it is this way? Read Gary North.
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