The Curious Case of the Japanese Toilet - Tokyo 5/2015

It seems the Japanese pulled out all the stops to make the process of excretion, a cultural experience in itself - pleasant, relaxing and very informative. 

I know a lot of tourists or first-time visitors to Japan may disagree. The sight of all those buttons and japanese characters on the normal toilet may make one feel intimidated at first glance. After all one may hit the wrong button and unwittingly get a free shower LOL 

But the Japanese characters with matching illustration are quite cute and clear by itself, erasing any doubt as to what it is for.

If you still feel uneasy, go ahead and push each button while you're in your cubicle, Be careful not to make a mess though. But if you did, just say "wakarimasen" ( I dont understand ) with a puzzled expression or "Sumimasen" ( which can mean anything from excuse me, sorry, please , etc) followed with lady-san and a smile and you'll be ok :) 

Note the following :
1. Music to mask the sound you make while you are pee-ing or doing the number 2

2 . The artificial sound of flushing is automatically turned on as one sits on the toilet. 

Per Wikipedia, the sound of urinating acutely embarrasses Japanese women . To mask the sound, they continuously flush the toilet. In the process of flushing , a huge amount of water goes down the drain and is wasted. To avoid gallons of water from being wasted day after day, the Japanese engineers figured that creating an artificial flush sound will answer the problem. Ergo, "musically-inclined" toilets were born :) 

3. Toilet seat temperature -- Imagine this, during winter your posterior can remain warm and toasty while answering the call of nature and during summer you can adjust the thermostat to cold Capital idea right? love it :) 

4..Deodorizer -- For more expensive toilets, in case of an emergency , the deodorizing button will erase any evidence of your dastardly deed pronto hahaha 

5.Bidet : Just push the button for washing the front and the back. 

Amazing how on point the water is. There are two "washers" and note that they are self cleaning. The front takes care of washing your nether regions gently and delicately.. While the back takes care of cleaning your posterior . It comes with pressure control. So you get free enema too LOL

6..Water Temperature : Wonderful how the Japanese thought of everything! Do you want it hot or cold on the place where the sun doesn't shine? LOL 

7. Blow Dryer : Not for your hair silly! But to dry your wet regions with after #4 :) Hai from a gai-jin's point of view, Japanese toilets are weird and strange and funny initially but becomes interesting as you learn the rationale behind all those gadgetry and you've experienced for yourself how they are used. 

The toilets do tell a lot about the Japanese mindset. As in everything Japanese, the key is order and perfection. 

Once you arrive at this premise, everything begins to make sense. I so love Japan ! 

Note : Of course, there are still traditional toilets aka squat toilets in some places side by side with the high tech ones. 

But if you're lucky enough to get stuck in a toilet that requires you to squat down, please remember to face the right way -- towards the higher mound. Toilets were spotless and high tech even in their palengke....galing! 

Some restaurants, provide slippers specifically for toilets and another pair for the main restaurant and never the twain shall meet hehehe. So be sure you have your socks on and check that there are no holes in it to embarrass you LOL

May 2015
Tokyo Japan