Japanese-style toilet
You can easily find books on learning about Japanese culture for foreigners who visit or live in Japan. But, you hardly find books which deal with the Japanese toilet. Liken in these pictures, both Japanese and western-style toilets are available in Japan, and more and more western-style toilets are available now. However, many public bathrooms still have Japanese-style toilets. So, many foreigners confuse and wonder how to use them, especially which direction they should face when using them. Some of them turn around and with their backs towards the toilet and its plumbing. But, that is wrong. Always look at the toilet when you are using them. You just have to get used to it. You can try it for fun, but be careful having too much fun. You might get off balance and turn over.
High-tech vending machine
One of the high-tech prowess in Japan is a vending machine with a large LED monitor instead of displaying actual products. In the high-tech world in Japan, it makes possible the vending machine use a touch screen technology and pay it with an electronic payment even using your cell phone.
Yokohama Chinatown
I went to Chinatown in Yokohama. It exists in various parts of the world. Like any other place, Yokohama in eastern Japan and Kobe in western Japan have Chinatowns. This time I went Chinatown in Yokohama to get my favorite Chinese dumplings with corianders. I found a strange sign in Chinatown. It says, “Please watch out for unlawful advertising or leafleting, begging’illegal street solicitations and forcing you to buy sweet chestnuts.” Watch out for a sweet chestnut hard-sell?
“Sakura mochi” – cherry flavored soft sweet rice cake
sakura mochi （cherry flavored soft sweet rice cake） is well known representative of spring sweets in Japan. The picture shows the most common sakura mochi in my hometown. It looks like a cherry blossoms and is wrapped in a cherry blossom leaf which is picked with salts. You can eat it with the leaf. Some of them are used a real leaf. How to make it is differ according to area. You should try at least one of them.
Enjoy the wait
When I went to a grocery store yesterday, I saw a long line. I wonder what the line was for. So, I went to the front of a queue and found out that they were trying to get a dozen of eggs for one dollar which was the half price of the regular price.
It is not unusual to see a long line of people waiting in front of a store to buy any sale goods or in front of a popular restaurant. They are in long line waiting anywhere from 30 minutes to hours even just get eggs.
Japanese have a tendency to feel comfortable when doing the same thing as everyone else. So, some people even “enjoy the wait.”
How about yourself?