More around Kotodai Koen

 This is where the arcade crosses the street. The building on the left contains a department store and on the second floor there is a Starbucks.

 The white building in the middle is where we usually have JALT meetings.

 The shop on the left is a coffee shop. We used to stop there quite often because the sell little bottles of wine and some bottled beer in addition to coffee, cake and sandwiches.

 This clock would be a landmark for meeting people if it were someplace else. Here it is just in the middle of the arcade and has no use other than the visual effect and telling the time, of course.

 The red panel is an ad for a Japanese style bar that is in the basement of the building. After the JALT meetings at least half of the participants go to this bar to eat, drink and chat.

This large building in the center is completely occupied by a karaoke place. I do not know how good the business is but it has been there for years.

Around the Kotodai Koen subway station

 

 The Kotodai Koen subway station has an exit that allows you to directly enter two large department stores.

 In the basement there is a large food shopping area that is connected so you can shop at shops in both stores.

 There are escalators from the subway platform up to the street level. At another floor there there is a large bookstore. This is the point where you get off it you want to go out to the street.

 You walk straight ahead through the store and you come to the arcade, which is the main downtown shopping area. This is a drug store

 It was early in the morning on a rainy day so there were few people. Once the stores all open, this area is usually crowded with shoppers.

This store makes and sells Japanese style sweets, the kind that are served with green tea. On the second floor they have a restaurant that has very good fixed meals. The menu is not extensive but the food is really good and the servings are not huge like they are in some other inexpensive restaurants.l