Shop for authentic Brazilian groceries and goods at this grocery store in Minato Ward, near Tokai Dori Station. They have a large selection of meats and other Brazilian, South American, and Filipino foods, as well as a buffet style restaurant for your dining enjoyment.
Aichi, Nagoya, Minato Ward
Shichibancho, 2-11-1
052-652-9955
From Tokai Dori Station, Exit through exit 4 and turn left. The store is just a little way down that street.
For some years now I’ve taken little trips to a Brazilian supermarket, Bompreco Mercado, which has a butcher that sells meat in large cuts and at very reasonable prices. On the first floor is the supermarket, a mobile phone shop, a butcher and a little bakery corner which sells delicious warm cheese bread.
On the second floor, among other things, is a beauty salon, video shop, and a fast food joint which has really nice steak burgers and other Brazilian treats.
On the third floor there is an all-you-can-eat restaurant that comes highly recommended by friends, although I have not yet eaten there myself.
Here are the details:
1368-1 Ikenomen Muranaka Komaki-shi Aichi-ken
Ph: 0568-71-8333
Opening Hours: 9am to 9:30pm, every day of the year
View Komaki X-Pat Map in a larger map
And here is the information for the other shops in Aichi Prefecture:
1-30 Aburaya-cho Minato-ku Nagoya-shi
Ph: 052-389-2856
Opening Hours: 9am to 9:30pm, every day of the year
61-1 Shimohosoike Yoshiwara-machi Toyota-shi Aichi-ken
Ph: 0565-51-5606
Opening Hours: 9am to 9:30pm, every day of the year
1-115 Kawanishi-cho Seto-shi Aichi-ken
Ph: 0561-85-7108
Opening Hours: 9am to 9:30pm, every day of the year
If you live in Nagoya itself, you do not need much in the way of a car or scooter to get around-a bicycle would likely be more than sufficient. For those times when it is just a little too far, the public transportation system is pretty convenient and will generally get you anywhere you need to go.
There are times, even in Nagoya, when a scooter is convenient, such as when lugging a weeks’ worth of groceries home on the subway, but if you live outside of the city or far from the subway lines, a scooter can make a huge difference in your quality of life, and the good news is; getting a 50cc, or smaller scooter-only license is fairly painless.
If getting licensed to drive a car is your aim, this is not the article for you, but you can find more information on that subject at Japan Drivers License. If you are already licensed to drive a “regular car,” the standard driving license in Japan, you are already licensed to ride a scooter of the size discussed in this article; 50cc or less. Congratulations, you are now free to move about the country on your scooter.
If that is not the case, you will need to get licensed to ride a scooter.
For Japanese law purposes, a scooter is a two-wheeled vehicle with an engine size of less than 50cc. Anything else is a motorcycle, and you need a separate license that is much harder and more expensive to get to ride one. The “large scooters” you see cruising the streets are not classified as scooters, but rather “automatic transmission motorcycles,” and you require a special license.
Getting a 50cc engine or below scooter license requires roughly 10,000 yen and about half a day of your time.
Getting a motorcycle license will cost 10x that amount to start with and increases in increments of time and money based on engine size.
To start with, you must take a written test at the Hirabari Driving Center. The test is not especially difficult, but a passing grade is 90% or better. The translations might be a little rough but understandable. The best way to prepare for this exam is to read “Rules of the Road,” available from the Japan Auto Federation.
After passing the test, you will be taken to a classroom for the indoor portion of the Safe Driving Course. It is conducted in Japanese. Just nod and smile; they will probably assume you do not understand, but it won’t matter, this is not a graded exercise, and as long as you stay awake, you should be OK.
After the class, you will be taken to a driving course for the outdoor portion of the Safe Driving Course, which is 2 hours and introduces you to the scooter’s basics: how to use the kickstand, start it, accelerate, brake, etc. After the class, you will get your license if you have managed not to hurt yourself or others.
Eligibility
Required Tests
Required Items
Fees Required
N.B. Heisei 27 = 2015, Heisei 28 = 2016, Heisei 29 = 2017, Heisei 30 = 2018、Heisei 31 = 2019
Good luck, and happy motoring!
Summer in Tokyo is hot, humid, and generally uncomfortable. Walking outside for any length of time in the summer’s heat in Tokyo will leave you “glistening” and tired. The average temperature in August is a high of 27°C / 80.6°F with a low of 25°C / 77°F, but just the other day it was in the middle 30’s /95°F. To escape the heat you can duck into a convenience store, supermarket, or other shopping center where the air conditioned temperature is likely to be more like 16°C / 61°F; less than half that high. After a few minutes of comfort, suddenly you realize that your “glistening” clothes are now freezing cold and start thinking of heading back outside; a sun inspired Catch 22 and ongoing joke on the population of Tokyo.
Things are not so bleak as all that though, you can find ways to stay cool and have fun at the same time. One great place that will cool you off is the aquarium, and Tokyo and its surrounding areas have more than you might expect! There are at least 7 in Tokyo itself, and a few more in the surrounding areas.
At the Shinagawa Aquarium you can experience a real “walk under water” while sea bream, stingrays, and turtles swim overhead and around in their famous “sea tunnel!” Or visit the “Shark Hall” where sand tiger sharks, grey reef sharks, and other sharks from all over the world are displayed in an oval tank which puts you in the middle of a three-dimensional school of sharks! If sharks are a bit too much for you, how about the Dolphin and Sealion Show, which includes all that has come to be expected from such shows; jumping, “humorous gestures,” etc.
Tel : 03-3762-3431 (Taped information), 03-3762-3433 (Office)
Website : http://www.aquarium.gr.jp/(Japanese)
Address : Shinagawa-kumin Park, 3-2-1, Katsushima, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo
Admission : Adult (16+): ¥1,100 / Student or child (6 through 15): ¥600 / Child (under 5): ¥300
There is plenty of information out there about the remaining aquariums, take a quick surf through and see if anything looks like a day at the beach for you! Keep cool Tokyo!
You can play mini golf, “putt putt” or “baby golf,” in Japanese, at Tsurumai Park Baby Golf at Tsuruma Park near Tsurumai Station! This is a great way to kill a couple of hours with the family within the city, and it costs less than any drinks and snacks you might buy at the convenience store to go along with your outing! A couple of hundred yen per round on this 9 hole hole course.
Open 10:00 to 17:00 (Reception closes at 16:30)
※ The course is open only Saturdays, Sundays and holidays from December to February
Japanese Version of Golf Page on Tsuruma Park Website
The course is adjacent to Tsurumai library (with some English books), for some air-conditioned relief when it gets too hot!
You might be interested in this article from The History Channel in the US, “Six Things You Should Know About Tokyo.” If you live in Tokyo these might not come as a surprise, but then again… they may still. You can read the introduction here, and click through to read the complete list at the History Channel’s website.
“On July 8, 1853, U.S. Commodore Matthew Perry led the U.S. Navy’s East India Squadron into Uraga Harbor in Edo (modern-day Tokyo), Japan, in what became the first step toward the “opening” of the Asian nation to western trade and influence after more than 250 years of “isolation” under the ruling Tokugawa shogunate.
The arrival of the Perry expedition and the U.S. Navy’s “black ships” led to a series of economic, political and social crises that brought tremendous upheaval to the country—followed by unprecedented growth—paving the way for the rise of modern Japan.
One hundred and sixty years after Matthew Perry’s arrival in Japan, here are some things you may not know about the nation’s capital.”
Six Things You Should Know About Tokyo — History in the Headlines.