Fukubukuro! - January 2nd

The fukubukuro (lucky bag) is a New Year special deal that shops have to help them clear out as much merchandise as possible. It's like Japan's white sale, but with a twist. The bags have a set price, and contain anywhere between three and five times the price of the bag itself. The catch is you don't know what's in the bag until after you've purchased it. It's the ultimate crapshoot; even though you're guaranteed to get more than your money's worth in retail gear, you run the risk of getting something you don't want or need. Starting on January 2nd, these bags will grace storefronts all over Japan, from clothing and jewelry shops to huge electronics chains. Hell, even the the grocers will have bags of various fruits and vegetables. But no peeking!

I talked to Ehtesham a while back about going to get some fukubukuro. A rabid shopper, he wouldn't dare turn down an opportunity to spend money. We made plans to meet in front of Marui around 9am on the 2nd day of the year to plunder his favorite stores. The strategy was that if we lined up at the Marui that dedicates the first 6 floors to women, we would have far less competition in the men's stores than if we went to the Marui Men down the street. Ehtesham has the whole area scoped out, and has even talked to some of the workers at the shops, so our shopping trajectory has already been plotted.

When we got to the store, the line had already wrapped its way around the block and into an alley behind the building. We took our place and waited for the line to move. Behind us the line grew exponentially, reassuring us that we hadn't arrived too late. When the doors opened, the line heaved forward and the crowd surged into the store. We broke for the escalators and got up to the men's floors with the few other guys. I immediately grabbed a fukubukuro at the shop in front of the escalators, and Ehtesham made a beeline for Jun Men. He got his bag and went back to the shop where I got mine, and picked up a second one. He then said there was another store he wanted to visit upstairs, and I followed him up the escalator. He bought a third fukubukuro, and convinced me that I wanted a second one. I asked if any L-size bags remained, and was told that none were left. I figured that I would give up on getting two bags, and stood aside as I waited for Ehtesham. At this point, the salesmen held up their last bag, an LL, asking if anyone wanted it. I watched and waited for almost a whole minute while no one claimed it, and finally I gave in and grabbed the bag.

Ehtesham and I went to a nearby Mister Donut to check out our bounty. I lucked out with a pretty nice selection of jackets and shirts, and one crazy white sweater that had no place in Japan (not just because of the style, but because it was absolutely huge). Ehtesham didn't fare so well, as he pulled a pair of white leather pants worthy of Michael Jackson circa 1988. Considering how much he shops, he won't be hurting for outfits anytime soon, but I managed to expand my wardrobe quite nicely. Later on, Hans, Tracey and Willy showed up and we returned to Jun Men, where we spent the rest of the day watching in awe as Willy and Ehtesham bought suits. I am amazed.