vivre le japon

Japan was one of the places the girls were really looking forward to, simply because they love sushi so much!  And also because they heard that toilets are very sophisticated in Japan (kids and toilet humour!).

So yes, they have made it their mission to eat as much sushi as they can.  And they are researching the best toilets in town as well.  Warmth of toilet seat should be pleasantly warm and not hot.  Choices of spray and bidet?  Selection of sounds?  They think its hilarious and fantastic at the same time.  Who am I to argue?

Efficiency greeted us at the airport; no queues at customs, our luggage arrived and were taken off the belts, waiting for us.  Destinations of shuttle buses are clearly marked, buses are on time, luggage tagged. 

The shopping experience in Japan cannot be matched anywhere else in the world.  Is that a mission for me?  You get offered a face towel, staff wait outside your door to see if you need help and giftwrapping is always offered. 

No one tries to rip us off because we’re tourists.  People are kind.  An elderly woman offered to help me with my luggage coming down the stairs. 

Aesthetics is everything.  What other words to describe Tokyo?  Urban.  Neat.  Efficient.  Organised.  Polite.  Helpful.  Considerate.  Remember the images of people queuing up calmly for food after the tsunami?  Those pictures say a lot about the Japanese.

We met up with two young friends from Malaysia.  Ezlyn, Elena’s younger sister, who is married to a Japanese and living here now for 8 years. Jeannette, whom my mum used to look after when she was a baby till her teens.  Now a grown young woman, she is studying medical robotics at a top university in Tokyo.  Fun to have seen them again, talk about what its really like living in Japan.   They brought typical Japanese snacks for the girls.  Arigato gozaimas.  (ps.I love the green tea Kit Kat).