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The Fake Flush

January 17, 2007 at 10:15 AM | 0 Comments

Heading to Japan for a spot of English teaching has been a popular pastime for a couple of decades now, but those who go still find things a bit surprising. Nearly nothing is as you'd expect, from bathing naked to bad Japanese soda like SMAP and really weird flavors of ice cream.

A couple of gals who are currently finding this all out for themselves are running a nice blog called Japan Nomads, and this week Emily explained some of the intricacies of using Japanese toilets. Of course, mastering the "squat" toilet (and what to do with your clothing while you do) is a trick that helps you out in many parts of Asia, but some of the technology that Emily points out seems a bit more Japan-specific:

Perhaps even more exciting than different styles of toilets, Japanese toilets often have four or five buttons ... One button, labeled with a music note, creates a flushing sound when pushed to cover any embarrassing bathroom noises, which for many Japanese women, is any bathroom noise. The others mostly relate to the integrated bidet, which both sprays clean water and blow dries, right from the toilet. Travelers beware, the shock of pressing a strange button and suddenly feeling a jet of water can lead to jumping and soaked pants.

So you can't say we haven't warned you.

[Photo: AmiSng]