The Japan Chronicles - Part 2

Part of what is making this time in Japan so delightful to me, are lots of little details.  Just the simple everyday things we do, but with some delightful twists.  Our son arranged for us to stay in a really nice hotel.

  

The room is very spacious, and there is even a kitchenette, so we can make our own breakfast and snacks if we wish.  It's great to be able to have coffee whenever I want, and here's one of those little details I mentioned.

This is a hot water pot.. All Japanese homes and most hotel rooms have one of these.  You fill the inner container with water, and it keeps it just below boiling, an instant hot water source.  Perfect for tea, coffee, or ramen noodles.   I'm a bit of a snob about coffee, won't drink instant.  Look at this brilliant solution that I've never seen in the States.

Mon Cafe, one serving, individually packaged.  All you need is your cup and hot water.

Fold up the little cardboard wings, hook them over the rim of your cup, and add hot water to the ground coffee.

Really good tasting, fresh coffee, without any special machine to produce it.  So clever.

Here is another different touch, and one that I wish I could take back home with me. This is the bath room in our hotel room, and it's designed for that specifically. bathing.  It's enclosed in glass, and has a tile floor with a drain in it.  There is a flexible shower, plus a wonderful deep tub, which allows you to soak up to your shoulders.

Before you soak in the tub, you scrub and shower off, so that you are already clean when you enter the tub.

Wouldn't this be great to warm up in on a cold winter night?  Of course this is a hotel version, but most homes in Japan have a similar arrangement.

Next installment, food adventures!