Starbucks in Shinjuku Gyoen was crowded, but the slope next to it was also crowded

People lying down in Shinjuku Gyoen Park — People relaxing in Shinjuku Gyoen Park

There are several rest stations in the large Shinjuku Gyoen Park. It seems like the whole park is for relaxing and resting, but in this case, resting stations are places where you can use the restroom and have a little food and drink. My favorite rest station was the one between the landscape garden and the middle pond.

The rest station, built on a slope down to the pond, had only vending machines for drinks and a kiosk-like store, but the tables placed haphazardly inside the building were always empty and a place to relax. There was also a terrace from where you could watch the pond and the people walking by it. And what I liked most of all was the deserted atmosphere.

Before I knew it, the resting station had been turned into a Starbucks. The logo of a mermaid was painted on the wall, and you couldn't even enter the building without buying something. I was shocked to see that the person I had always thought of as poor had suddenly turned into a money worshipper. I looked inside and found the place full and crowded, with none of the desolate atmosphere of the past.

I had no choice but to come to the slope next to the rest station. It was also crowded. As I looked at the people lying on the lawn, I wondered if the cats that had been fed on the terrace were still being fed.

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