One of the most interesting things to collect in Japan, is surprisingly by Japan's Sewerage Department, and it's totally free. No shit, that's a collection of words I didn't expect to write. Japan's Sewerage Public Relations Department, makes colourful collectible plastic cards, issued as free souvenirs to tourists and collectors. They feature local attractions, mascots and sometimes even information about their plumbing achievements, and are available all over Japan. This is a guide on how you can start your collection, and then it's up to you to build it up however you want.
I've been to Japan twice, and my greatest regret is that I came to know of these collectible cards only after leaving Tokyo during my first trip. You've probably come across how you can collect little stamps in a notebook across all tourist sites (If you haven't, that's another great side quest. Most tourist sites will have a little ink pad and an intricate stamp featuring the local specialty, and if you have a notebook, you can collect these stamps as a record of your journey). This is similar, but a bit more tangible, and more colourful.
The first step to starting your own collection, is knowing about it, which this post will do. Manholes in Japan have been used to depict regional specialties, attractions, local heroes and whatnot for quite some time. But manholes are made of heavy metal, and carrying them away, no matter how pretty they look, is a crime. Look at this picture of a manhole cover in Osaka, featuring Osaka castle. So pretty! To avoid all this hassle, Japan came up with these little plastic cards that feature the same art work on them, and made it a collectible souvenir. You can see that the 2nd manhole card in the first column in the picture above, has the same image as the actual manhole below (albeit in a different colour).
Okay, now you know manhole cards exist. The second step to starting your collection, is opening the holy grail of manhole cards, a personal project by some kind soul who has mapped every manhole card that is there to collect all over Japan, on this google map here. All the information is in Japanese, but Google translate does a fair job. Zoom into any place, click one of the manhole icons, and "Switch to Distribution map". This shows the address & google map co-ordinates of the place where you can get the cards. It also has links to websites which show if the card is in stock. If you're visiting some place in Japan, you can just take a look at the map, and see if there's a manhole card nearby, and go and pick it up, and you'll have the makings of your own collection. You can see on the map that different regions have different coloured cards.
If you've been bitten by the manhole bug, like me, you can plan an entire itinerary around collecting manhole cards. On my second trip, I totally took advantage of a JR pass that allowed unlimited Shinkansen rides, to just hop-on, hop-off at various little towns just to pick up manhole cards. I now have a collection of about 28 cards. If you're vaguely interested in this, and will be happy with just one as a souvenir, the easiest one to collect is in Shinjuku Tourist information center, near Shinjuku Station, a touristy area that's likely to be visited by anyone going to Japan the first time. Amazingly, this is one card that I don't have, despite staying in Shinjuku during my trip, because I remembered manhole card collecting only after leaving Tokyo. If you manage to collect more than one from anywhere in Tokyo, I'm happy to swap a double I have. Instead of navigating Japanese, the link to this easiest manhole card pick-up is listed on the Culturally Adventurous map.
The following section is for those who want to get into the hobby, and collect more than one, so feel free to skip if that's not you.
While these cards are indeed free, and you will be handed one if you ask for it without any trouble whatsoever, there are some points to note, which I found out the hard way. Not all the cards are available in easy to access tourist centers. Some of them require you to visit local government offices, or the Sewerage board office itself! I've found myself at a Sewerage Museum in Fukuoka (where they encourage you to take a look at their accomplishments before handing you the card), and in Takatsuki City Hall, where there was an election going on while I went to get my card! In Hiroshima, I was asked to answer a questionnaire about water saving principles before getting my cards. So while you may not pay in cash, you may have to pay in time, and calories (if you decide to walk everywhere like I did) while building your collection. The cards are handed out strictly one per person. Apparently there have been cases of scalping, auctioneering and all sorts of things that the government wants to discourage. But if you go as a couple, or a group, they will hand out one to each person if everyone asks for it. The cards are also only available at certain times (usually 09:00 AM to 05:00 PM, though some places may be open till 08:00 PM). The timings are listed on the map, so make sure you reach during opening hours to avoid disappointment. There are also some cards which are distributed at two different locations (one for weekdays, one for weekends). Make sure you go to the right one. I've found out the hard way and missed collecting some nice cards just because I went to the wrong place, and didn't have time to go to the right location which was too far away.
While collecting cards is one thing, this activity also gives you a look into the Japan you don't normally visit as a tourist (visiting a government office, or walking into some remote residential locality), so the journey also ends up being as interesting as the physical card. If you start collecting, welcome to the hobby! Drop a line, and we can exchange notes.
