A bicycle crossed the street in front of a sign that said Ameyoko

I was waiting for a traffic light at a crosswalk in front of Okachimachi station. The light was red, so there was no one crossing the street. On the other side of the street, I could see people waiting at the traffic light just like me, and I could also see the sign of Ameyoko above their heads. The other side of the street was the entrance to Ameyoko. As I stood there in a daze, a bicycle crossed the street in front of me.

I was told that this area used to be a residential area in the downtown. The name of the area is said to have originated from the fact that many samurai, who were not allowed to ride a horse, lived here. During World War II, the area was bombed and turned into scorched earth, and a black market was set up here, which is said to be the origin of Ameyoko. If you were to ask me, I would say that there are remnants of the black market in the messy atmosphere, but if you didn't ask me, I wouldn't think that it was originally a black market. In the first place, it may be difficult to realize that there is such a thing as a black market in today's Japan.

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