Japan Is Opening A ‘Slowpoke Park’ To While Your Laziest Days Away

If you feel like time is zipping by too quickly, perhaps the remedy you need is Slowpoke Park, a new park springing up in Japan’s Kagawa prefecture.

Slowpoke Park is scheduled to open in mid-April of 2023, according to the Kagawa government, which has also shared an artist’s concept of what the venue might look like. As suggested in the illustration, there are plans to build a playground with a giant Slowpoke slide.

The character even made an appearance at the press conference announcing this unexpected project.

本日のポーズを取るヤドンの動画をどうぞ📹
動いているかわからない？🤭#ヤドン公園 pic.twitter.com/rrdwIcUzf3

— ポケモンだいすきクラブ編集部【公式】 (@pokemon_pdc) December 20, 2022

Granted, the park seems tailored for kids, but grown-up Pokémon trainers should still pop by the area to enjoy its many Slowpoke-themed attractions. Kagawa Prefecture happens to be the de facto home of the Slowpoke since the pocket monster’s Japanese name, Yadon, sounds a lot like udon, which is what the vicinity is traditionally known for.

The pun started out as an April Fool’s Day joke that even saw Slowpoke elected as prefectural governor. Since then, Slowpoke buses, Slowpoke manhole covers, and Slowpoke-inspired nosh have been introduced in the prefecture, SoraNews24 reports.

[via SoraNews24 and NintendoSoup, cover image via Kagawa Prefecture Tourism Association]