提到陪伴無數孩子長大的卡通角色，很多人可能會想到哆啦A夢，或稱小叮噹、櫻桃小丸子、史努比或寶可夢等，然而，較少人會提到麵包超人，不過，可能因為我小時候有段時間的早餐都是麵包加牛奶，所以，一聽到有個叫《麵包超人》的卡通角色時，就自然的留心上了，長得像紅豆麵包外型的麵包超人，它有著圓嘟嘟的臉龐，加上兩塊凸起的大腮紅及紅通通的圓鼻子，只要臉部受損或受潮時會變弱，這個角色設定更是讓人宛然一笑，小時候的我只覺得好玩又有趣。
麵包超人館前面巨大的《麵包超人》招牌，很難讓人不注意到，館內空間的不大，不過，店內販售著小朋友喜愛的布玩偶，有麵包超人、嬰兒超人、咖哩麵包超人等各式麵包超人主題中型布偶，麵包超人餐具、水杯、便當盒等生活用品也好可愛，而除了生活用品外，還有幼兒拼圖球、安全積木、現烤麵包工廠、嬰兒布繪本等商品，當然店內還有不少日本限定商品，這就是人們來這裡朝聖的目的之一，不過，我身邊的朋友雖然知道《麵包超人》，大多也都聽過主題曲，或看過那顆圓圓紅鼻子的經典形象，然而，真正會瘋狂迷上《麵包超人》的人，卻是一個也沒有。
常碰到快閃店活動的我，這次倒是逛到了《麵包超人》主題專賣店，事後上網研究了一下，原來這家店，還是《麵包超人》在海外的第一家店，當然，規模和日本的幾家專賣店比起來，小了不少，商品的品項也不如位於日本的專賣店豐富，不過，喜歡《麵包超人》那種單純的善良與正義感的粉絲們，就不用特地飛到日本朝聖了。
When people talk about cartoon characters that grew up with countless kids, many might think of Doraemon, also known as Little Ding-Dong, Chibi Maruko-chan, Snoopy, or Pokémon. However, fewer people would mention Anpanman. Maybe because there was a period in my childhood when my breakfast was always bread and milk, the moment I heard about a cartoon character called “Anpanman,” I naturally became interested in it. With his red bean bun-like appearance, round chubby face, big rosy cheeks, and bright red nose, Anpanman looked both funny and adorable. What made it even more amusing was his character setting — whenever his face got damaged or soaked with water, he became weak. As a kid, I simply thought it was hilarious and entertaining.
The huge Anpanman sign in front of the Anpanman Museum was impossible to miss. Although the space inside wasn’t very large, the store was packed with cute merchandise that children absolutely love. There were medium-sized plush dolls of Anpanman, Babyman, Currypanman, and many other characters from the Anpanman series. The Anpanman-themed tableware, cups, and lunch boxes were also incredibly adorable. Besides daily necessities, the shop also sold toddler puzzle balls, safety building blocks, toy bakery sets, and baby cloth picture books. Of course, there were also plenty of Japan-exclusive items, which is probably one of the main reasons fans come here to visit. Still, even though my friends all know about Anpanman, have heard the theme song, or recognize that iconic round red nose, not a single one of them is truly obsessed with the series.
Since I often come across pop-up store events, this time I ended up visiting an actual Anpanman specialty store instead. After doing some research online afterward, I discovered that this store was actually the very first overseas Anpanman shop. Of course, compared to the specialty stores in Japan, this one is much smaller, and the product selection is nowhere near as extensive. Still, for fans who love the simple kindness and sense of justice that Anpanman represents, at least now they don’t have to fly all the way to Japan just to experience the world of Anpanman.