Unique Things to Get Only in Japan

Every country has something unique to offer for visitors. From cultural handicrafts to unique eats, there’s always something waiting to be discovered when going to a new place.

Check out some of the unique things you can get only in Japan!

Sake and other Japanese liquors

Sake, or rice wine, is a Japanese alcoholic beverage made from fermented rice.  Sake is important in Japanese culture and is often used as a celebratory drink in almost every defining moment of a person’s life, from birth to honoring someone at death.

Aside from sake, Japan is also know to brew some of the finest wines and liquors. Suntory’s Yamazaki Single Malt was once awarded the distinction of being the best whisky in the world.

Tenugui

A tenugui (手拭い) is a traditional plain-woven Japanese hand towel.  It’s a popular omiyage or souvenirto give family and friends, from Japan. What makes it unique are the many different colorful patterns printed on the tenugui.  History tells us that the tenugui was already being used as early as the Nara Period (710-794 CE). By the Edo Period (1603-1868 CE), the practicality of using the tenugui reached the common folk.

Furoshiki fabrics

The Japanese style of gift-wrapping using wrapping cloth called “furoshiki.” The word, which means “bath spread”, is a sheet of cloth that was initially used to carry clothes and bath items to public bath houses. Later on, furoshiki was used to carry groceries and wrap and carry bento boxes as well as market wares. Today, this versatile wrapping cloth is also used for gift-wrapping.

Exclusive Japanese video games

For anyone and everyone who can appreciate video games, it’s a well-known fact that Japan is the home of Nintendo, Sony, Capcom, Konami and Sega, to name a few. For gaming enthusiasts, it would be heaven to get certain games only for the Japanese market. Games such as the classic Pokemon: Green Version for Nintendo Gameboy and the newer Tingle’s Balloon Fight for the Nintendo DS, a Zelda spinoff.

Omamori charms

Omamori a popular amulet or talisman in Japanese Buddhist and Shinto traditions. Sold at most religious sites and dedicated to many different Shinto deities, the many colorful omamori sold all around Japan are believed to provide protection and good luck to anyone who carries it.

Washi paper

Washi is a type of paper unique to Japan and one of UNESCO’s intangible cultural heritage objects. It is made of fibers from the barks of mulberry (kozo) and gampi trees and the mitsumata shrub. Washi paper is used in making a variety of traditional Japanese everyday objects such as clothes, lamps, and toys, as well as ritual objects used by Shinto priests and for statues of Buddha.