(Originally posted with photo(s) at http://dlamini-dlamini.blogspot.com/)
Gambling is illegal in Japan, according to the Criminal Code. Indeed, there are no casinos in the country. Well, sort of. There is nothing named 'casino'. Instead, special laws have been made to allow betting on horses, a lottery and so on.
Of all these 'exceptions', the phenomenon of establishments called 'pachinko', such as 'Jumbo Slot', the one in the photo, has to be the most intriguing (photo taken at JR Notogawa station, Shiga Prefecture). Pachinkos are all over Japan, numbering 18,000 (http://mondediplo.com/1998/10/12japan) - somewhat comparable to the 25,000 post offices which are generally considered to be more vital. In the pachinkos, you pay, play and then, if you win many balls (which serve as tokens), you can exchange them, typically for little slits of gold encased in plastic. You may not exchange these for cash - at least not at the same premises, so every pachinko has a little 'exchange store' (in practice just an exchange window) next to it where you can get money for the little trinkets you have won...
Indeed, has the the spirit of the law currently gone out to lunch?
