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Danielle- Shopping Malls

Shopping Malls



I noticed I don't talk about shopping enough, so here's a brief overlook of some of my favorite shopping malls (so far~) out here in Japan.

AEON
I have one about 5 minutes away from my local train station here in Chiba. It feels very homey to me, just because it's really spacious and open and reminds me of a shopping mall I had back in Illinois.

What I love about Aeon, too, is that it has a bunch of different stores (other than just clothes). On the first floor, you have your groceries, bakery, and cosmetics, and stuff like that. On the other floors, you have your clothes, electronics, food court (talk about majorly nostalgic, especially with the KFCs and Subways), and mini arcade.

Chiba is kind of out-of-the-way, and so Aeon has been a very convenient place for me to buy my toiletries and CalorieMate... and just walk around, if I feel like it. I bought my first winter coat there and some gloves, and it was all reasonably priced, I think (granted, I try and wait for the sales, so that always helps).


SUNSHINE CITY
I love Ikebukuro. It's my favorite place in Tokyo. And in bustling Ikebukuro, there is a shopping mall that just makes me happy every time I walk in. Sunshine City is a mall complex that has a ton of different sights: clothes, neat little food shops, an aquarium, mini amusement park, and it even has its own planetarium. 

Sunshine City also has one of my favorite clothes stores, Axes Femme. So very dangerous. But I got very lucky the last time I went, because they had a huge winter sale going on, and though I don't do it often, I splurged and got a few new tops. Nothing that makes me feel like a princess more than wearing a new outfit~

Also. Ikebukuro's Animate is unparalleled to any other store on the face of this planet. :D


LALAPORT AND IKEA
Lalaport Tokyo-Bay is a huuuuge mall by Minami-Funabashi station that I like going to - if I don't mind the crowds so much. Every time I've gone, it's been busy with people. It's so massive that it consists of a bunch of different buildings and has an outdoor part to it, too (kind of reminds me of my old college campus).

Other than clothes, Lalaport has a pretty big variety of stores. But I was shocked to find a lot of familiar shops here, too, like Hollister, American Eagle, Lush, Gap, Banana Republic... And they even have their own Pokemon Center here!


And did I tell you all that I found an IKEA here in Chiba? :D 


Right across the street from Lalaport, is Japan's very own Ikea. Back in my old stomping grounds, we have an Ikea, too, so I was thrilled to find one out here. Walked around and checked out the stuff - familiar products and prices, though the room samples were different from the US household samples and more suited to a smaller Japanese home (many of the kitchen displays had rice cookers, so cute). I even had the official Ikea Meatballs for lunch. Nostalgia out the whazoo.

And that's all I have to report for this week! Talk to you later!

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