This post is dedicated to Sue, who (I think) wanted me to send her an eki stamp, and this gave me the idea to blog about rubber stamps!
eki stamps are rubber stamps available at virtually every train or transport station in Japan. Travelers can put these stamps into a stamp book as a record of their journeys, and they are very commonly collected. The first few times we’ve visited Japan we’ve done just this, but in recent trips I usually just put them on a postcard if I have one handy.
The above photo shows the two stamps available at Kinugawa station, and the imprint of the Tobu (as opposed to Metro) Asakusa station stamp.
Eki stamps are so popular in Japan that many other attractions including shopping centers and amusement parks have them as well. Both Tobu World Square and Edo Wonderland had them, but I didn’t have a postcard on me to collect the imprint.
Sometimes time-limited stamps exist to promote tourism or attract customers. An example of this is currently underway in Kinugawa: there are six demon statues around town, and next to each is a little wooden ‘house’ containing a stamp. The idea is to have fun finding all demons and collecting the six stamps. I found four in my wanderings, and put the stamps on postcards.
Another example are six bookstores around Tokyo currently having rubber stamps for the manga Frieren available free to use, and the sign next to them humorously says each time you use one you unlock a fast travel to that bookstore. These stamps are very cute, and I got one in January and another today. I wonder where the other four are?
Another common use of stamps is for a type of bingo or treasure hunt, and there’s one going on right now in Akihabara. Nine stamps related to the series Quintessential Quintuplets are available at various shops in Akihabara, and if you stamp them on the (free) bingo card you can get prizes. This is of course a way to get customers into shops, and it’s clever since 5 stamps are free but the other 4 require you to buy something. So everyone can get at least one free prize (a sticker) but if you spend money in the shops you can end up getting much more.
If you read yesterday’s blog post you will also remember the maze also used rubber stamps as a record of completion, which is the same basic idea.
Of course all these rubber stamps can be used to stamp anything you like, and reports say a handsome and wise young Australian was seen today putting one of the Quintuplet bingo stamps onto a postcard…
And then there’s this incredible rubber stamp at the reception in my hotel. It’s a three-colour design created by successive application of three different stamps. A plastic guide is provided to make sure the three align, and I’m sure you’ll agree it looks great! While using the stamp is free, it’s actually an advertisement, and you can order your own (in multiple designs with whatever text you like) for only $200!
You may have guessed with all the talk of mad postcard stamp applications, but some of you will be getting a card with a stamp on it. I’ll let you wonder which one, but so far it’s not the hotel one since it’s specific to this hotel rather than a place and I’m not sure you’d be interested. But it’s so cool if you want it, just text me or leave a comment (and don’t delay for obvious reasons).
