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Message:: [QUOTE="Collector1966, post: 564219, member: 17919"]Oh, there are large coin shows in Tokyo, to be sure, but the only one of any real size is the Golden Week show in Nihonbashi, which is the only one I've seen with international dealers and international mint representatives. There are somewhat smaller shows at Ohtemachi and Yurakucho, among other places, but they are not of the same size even as, say, FUN or Long Beach. As far as "coin shops abounding in just about every city of any size" goes, all I can say is, what do you consider a "city of any size"? I live in a metro area of 500,000, but there isn't a coin shop in sight. Nor is there ever a coin show here. There are two cities with a combined population of a half million within a 45-minute train ride of me, but there are apparently no coin shops there to speak of, either. The closest coin shops of any size are in Tokyo, more than an hour away. More than half of the dealers I have met at the coin shows in Tokyo are from Tokyo (23 wards) or suburban areas, with a very, very few from Nagoya, Osaka and Kyoto. Half of the listings for "coins and stamps" in my local yellow pages directory are Tokyo dealers, and the two listings for my state (prefecture) of 3 million apparently have little to do with coins.  Surprisingly, there are two listings for "stamp and coin" places in the directory that could be considered "local area" (1 1/2 hours by car), but I've never seen them at a coin show.[/QUOTE]