You Can Now Find Pokémon on Manhole Covers All Across Japan

Manhole covers go largely unnoticed by the ordinary passersby—but not in Japan! Across the country, these removable plates are designed as works of art. Typically, their illustrations depict a municipality’s local culture; however, new set of manhole covers is combining this tradition with some pop-culture fun. In some participating Japanese prefectures, you’ll now see Pokémon characters decorating the ground.

Called Pokémon Local Acts, the colorful manhole covers are meant to encourage local tourism in “lesser-known and disaster-hit destinations.” (Spotting painted manholes is a popular activity while traveling in Japan.) Each of the Pocket Monsters has a connection to the area in which they are located. Sometimes this is visual, such as with rock-type Pokémon Geodude and Onix in the Iwate Prefecture—iwa refers to rocks. Other times, their connection is a play on words. The elusive Eevee adorns manholes in the city of Ibusuki because the name, translated, sounds like “Eevee suki” or “Eevee likes.”

If you find one of these manhole covers, make sure you open Pokémon Go on your phone—all of them double as Pokestops in the game. Scroll down to see what Pokémon have graced the manhole covers, then visit the Local Acts to see where you can catch them all.

In parts of Japan, you can now find Pokémon adorning manhole covers.

The manhole covers double as Pokestops for Pokémon Go, so you can “catch them all.”

Pokémon Local Acts: Website
h/t: [Kotaku]

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Sara Barnes

Sara Barnes is a Staff Editor at My Modern Met, Manager of My Modern Met Store, and co-host of the My Modern Met Top Artist Podcast. As an illustrator and writer living in Seattle, she chronicles illustration, embroidery, and beyond through her blog Brown Paper Bag and Instagram @brwnpaperbag. She wrote a book about embroidery artist Sarah K. Benning titled "Embroidered Life" that was published by Chronicle Books in 2019. Sara is a graduate of the Maryland Institute College of Art. She earned her BFA in Illustration in 2008 and MFA in Illustration Practice in 2013.
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