JAPAN - While I’m over here fancying Apple Watches and summer travels, a gentleman in Japan sees dropping thousands of dollars on a pair of premium melons as a satisfactory purchase.

According to a Business Insider report, a fruit wholesaler local to Tokyo, Japan, won a bidding war for a pair of Yubari melons, the first of the year for the Sapporo Central Wholesale Market in northern Hokkaido. The victory cost him 1.5 million yen (about $12,400).

According to the report, however, he got them at a steal. Last year, the same offer of melons, which are considered a status symbol in the area, fetched 2.5 million yen (about $20,500). 

The country has a very specific set of qualifications for the Yubari variety. According to the report, the ideal Yubari melons are perfectly spherical displaying an evenly patterned rind, with a T-shaped stalk still attached and presented for sale an ornate, luxuriously-decorated box.

This isn’t the only fruit to fetch much more than a pretty penny.

As we’ve previously reported, regular fruit prices for the country are closer to what Americans would spend on fine wines or champagnes, with the gavel often falling on jaw-dropping offers for fresh foods that are relatively exotic for the area, like melons, mangos, or certain berries.