We know that Japan uses a seal/stamp to sign one's name.Today we go further and talk about stamps that serve as collectibles and can be found in various tourist spots and train stations. The famous "Sutanpu" [スタンプ] that are found in various places in Japan, temples, stations, islands, onsen, cities, parks, gardens, stores, konbini, and more.
These stamps are for you to , collect and the place you visited. These stamps are also believed to be a good marketing strategy. They can be of any size, color and shape. Some are stamped in the traditional way, placing the stamp on the cushion and stamping, but there are stamps that look like a giant stapling machine, or that already have the built-in cushion.
There are various types of different stamps, some are released to commemorate a special occasion, sometimes even stamp collecting competitions are held to see who collects the most stamps. The good thing is that these stamps found at tourist spots can replace a souvenir or postcard. In most of these places you find blank sheets, or can buy a postcard and stamp it for your friends.
In most castles and museums you will find one or more stamps of different sizes or shapes. In the Osaka aquarium you can find stamps of marine animals all over the place. Sometimes you find these stamps in the most unlikely places possible.
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Eki Sutanpu - Train station stamp
These stamps are usually big and represent a highlight of the place or neighborhood. Since there are over 9,000 train stations in Japan, it is believed that there may be over 5,000 stamps. It's worth noting that these stamps are updated, some have limited editions, etc.
In most stations the stamp is usually at the entrance or in some prominent place, but each station is different from the other. It can be both outside and inside the station, you can ask an officer where the stamp location is saying:
駅スタンプはどこですか
Eki sutanpu wa doko desuka?
The stamp may be inside a department of the station such as Ticket Office. It may also happen that the station does not have a stamp, depending on its size or company.
I want to collect!
The first place I found a stamp was at Sky Tree, unfortunately I didn't have a notebook, so the first thing you need to do is get a notebook. Despite having several bookstores on site, the notebooks without a line I found are expensive and weird. I found the perfect notebook in a 100 yen store, and then I put a lot of stickers to hide the notebook logo.
I walked through several Tokyo stations and got several stamps, I had to leave most stations, but I didn't spend because I used the JR. I found some stamps that have nothing to do with the place, anime characters, fish, buildings, etc. I made a video of my small stamp notebook and I'll leave it for you to watch below:
