Shinsaibashi

Shinsaibashi-suji Shopping Street runs about 580 m north to south, from the south side of Nagahori-dori to Soemoncho-dori, lined with department stores, clothing shops and restaurants. It goes back to the Edo period, when most shops sold books and second-hand books, props, koto and shamisen, or kimono. From the Meiji era shops selling imported goods, watchmakers and fashionable stores moved in, and in the Taisho and Showa eras kimono shops grew into department stores; the young shoppers strolling the street were nicknamed the Shinbura-zoku. The street runs its own Yukata Festival and seasonal events, and shops several centuries old sit next to the latest fashion.

Translated and shortened from the Osaka Prefecture tourist listing (大阪府 観光施設一覧, CC BY 4.0).