My plane arrived at Haneda kuukou very late at night, and I had been advised to book a hotel in the airport, as Tokyo public transport does not operate after midnight. (No vomitous nightbus for them!) I had flown no-frills and by this time was dying for a snack, nice cup of tea...
Hotel room was great: super modern, ultra clean, all details carefully considered*.
And then there was this. I knew it was a type of kettle, but what should I do with it? All instructions were written in Japanese Kanji. I pressed every button, twisted every lever ...no response, and nothing that I could recognise. After about ten minutes of grappling and puzzling, the lid finally popped up! It was indeed a kettle, but one that heats and stores water, which you then can dispense (as if from an office coffee machine) during your stay. (Honestly, never seen one of these in the UK!)
Finally - fridge raided for peanuts, hot cup of o-cha.. and Ghost Whisperer mysteriously dubbed into Japanese on TV ** :)
In many ways this experience encapsulated my brief findings in Japan. Things are different, and actually often better, more advanced than what I know. But there is a lot of puzzling to be done before making anything work! And fluent knowledge of Japanese Kanji would be mighty helpful..
* All amenities, computerised loo with heated seat, even a heated portion on the bathroom mirror, so an area wouldn't steam up after showering and one can still do one's face.
** This TV viewing was quite good fun, but for some reason one wimpy looking guy had been given a huge, manly, booming voiceover in Japanese. (Bit of a giggle if you've watched the original, and I'm sure he'd be amused at such an honour!)
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