Making most of small spaces in Tokyo's Golden Gai. It’s no secret Tokyoites are masters of making the most of space.

Take the Golden Gai in the Shinjuku district: Tucked between the Kabukicho entertainment district and Hanazono Shrine, nearly 280 bars and restaurants are squeezed into an area about the size of half a soccer field. The Golden Gai is a sliver of old Tokyo in a modern metropolis filled with endless gleaming buildings. It’s a one-of-a-kind tourist attraction, for sure. But it’s also a place for a few drinks and friendly chatter among exhausted workers known as “salarymen.”

A man strolls through a narrow alleyway clustered with tiny bars and restaurants at the Golden Gai in the Shinjuku district of Tokyo, July 17, 2019.

A man strolls through a narrow alleyway clustered with tiny bars and restaurants at the Golden Gai in the Shinjuku district of Tokyo, July 17, 2019.

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