This is the sunrise I can see from the house I was staying at. You can see many buildings, that’s Surfers Paradise. It was taken around 6:30 or slightly before that in the morning. It’s so nice to start up a day with sunrise like this!

My work ended earlier than expected, and so I’m returning to Japan earlier than planned. I have a few days off to explore Surfers Paradise and Broadbeach before I go back to Japan. It’ll be when I settle down in Tokyo that I can finally write more about what I found in Australia. I’m going to be busy exploring the area, shopping souvenirs and chill out at the beach.

What kind of Japanese cuisine do I miss? I miss Ramen badly~~~~! :p
Cheers,
Kirin

Let me remember how groceries were priced in Japan. Now I’m shopping groceries in Australia, I find some things can be even more expensive than purchased in Japan. For example, I felt the salad bag is too expensive here. 1 bag is about 500yen? Well, maybe the bag is 5 times bigger than the equivalent product in Japan. That’s possible…:p

One thing for sure is the prices certainly went up in general, compared with the time I was travelling around this country during 1999-2000. It’s not too much to say that the prices are almost the same or even expensive than those in Japan. Time has changed…

The following pictures were taken randomly in the local supermarkets near my apartment in Japan.

Bagel…1 bagel costs 119yen (tax included). I really hate that bagels are expensive in Japan. I know I can buy them at COSTCO, but my life is not compatible with it.

Natto…1 natto (with 3 packages) costs 88yen. It’s pretty cheap!


Tea…TWININGS Tea (20 tea bags) costs 399yen. I found the tea bags sold in Australia are slightly bigger than ours in Japan. Ours is designed for 160ml of water or something (not sure) but here it is designed for 220ml of water or something. I guess 1 cup is bigger here.

Rice…1880yen (5kg) and 3580yen (10kg). In Australia, I eat SUN RICE that is about 500yen for 2kg. Unexpectedly I don’t really miss Japanese rise so much. It was good to know that it doesn’t have to be Japanese rice, as long as it’s a tasty rice.

Japanese styled curry roux…178yen. It was surprising that I found Japanese curry roux at a general supermarket (Woolworth or Coles) in Australia!

Cabbage…350yen (whole) and 178yen (half). Sometimes quarter size is also available when the supermarket targets single or small family customers.

Sashimi…380yen (1 package), 680yen (2 packages) and 1000yen (3 packages). I like that we can get Sashimi very easily like this in Japan.

Green peppers…158yen for 1 package (normally contains 5-6 green peppers). I hate this. Why don’t they sell it by the kilo? I don’t need 5 or 6 at a time always.

Shimeji mushrooms…98yen for 1 package

Apple…198yen for 1 apple, not 1 kilo! You can see how fruits are expensive in Japan.

Banana…198yen for a bag of banana. Do we need a bag first of all? They could reduce the price without the bag or wrap, and that’s also eco friendly I guess…

Strawberries…598yen for 1 package (about 12 to 15 strawberries)

Snack-1…a bag of potato chips for 99yen

Snack-2…Pocky (9 small bags) for 238yen

Cup noodles…about 100-130yen per cup

Did I start missing Japanese food? No, not really. I noticed I will be OK as long as I can eat rice. I mostly eat either sandwich or pasta when I don’t eat rice with curry or fried rice or whatever. What did you think when you shopped at a grocery store in Japan? Did you feel some products were way too expensive or very reasonable?

2 weeks have passed since I left Japan. Over here in Australia I am leading a very simple and healthy life. Due to the characteristics of my work here, I wake up before sunrise (5am) and go to bed before 10pm. Am I bored? No, it may sound boring but on the contrary I’m busy and I definitely need holidays free from work before I return to Japan.

Somehow it took me a long time to be able to write a post to TKE. (The last 4 posts were written beforehand to be scheduled for release automatically. So this is the very first post that I write in Australia.) I don’t even know how to explain this feeling, but let me try. Because the life over here is so much different from the one I had in Tokyo, I am not feeling that I am the same person who was in Japan. Yes, I miss my little Pi-chan and I talk with my hubby over Skype very often, but the life which I had only 2 weeks ago now seems something irrelevant to me. I had my husband and Pi-chan in the small apartment and I had a few good friends there and my social life was such and such…I feel all those things were what happened to my previous life and I can’t even remember it well. That’s why I can’t regain the feeling as Kirin at Tokyo Kawaii, etc.

I have no idea what happened to me. It’s not that I lost memory or somebody spelled me (lol). Before I came here, I was willing to write many interesting posts from Australia, but I just don’t feel like that now any longer. Maybe later, when I have some days off, I can find kawaii goods or interesting things in the city area and I may feel like writing a post.

The environment changed from a crowded area with large population to a lot of space, green, and wild animals. (I saw 3 wild kangaroos in a morning!) The life style changed from late-to-bed and late-to-rise to the other way round. My diet changed from eating 3 big meals to 2 small meals + some fruits, naturally. I always tend to think too much, but over here I don’t. I think I’m more relaxed here. It’s my work style from computer that is the same. That’s the only common practice among all those differences.

I may write a different taste of post for a while. I’m feeling myself a different type of me. In other words, if I were from Australia I wouldn’t write a blog with TKE’s taste. I’m not saying good or bad, it’s just I feel myself different from the Kirin in Tokyo. OK, I sound weird. I know. :p Have you had a similar experience in a foreign country? BTW, I’m not homesick. lol

The article is submitted by Katherine, on behalf of Miccostumes.com – a site sharing you costume ideas for adults, teens and kids.

===Guest Post starts from here===

Most people hold the opinion that once a girl puts on a black-and-white shirt and a checkedskirt, she has already been a Lolita girl. Also, there are some people think Lolitadoes not only refer to a kind of costume style, but also a sort of spirit. Generallyspeaking, the concept of Lolita originates in the palaces of Europe. Princessesare fond of doll-styled clothes. And then, this clothing style spread to Japanand was carried forward there. Finally, it became a fashion style!

Three Main Streams in the Lolita Dress Industry

All Lolita dressesare divided into three categories, including sweet love Lolita, elegant gothic Lolita and classic Lolita. They attract different people and feature diverse appeal. Each year, there will be some new arrivals that lead the trend in the fashion world. Below, you will get an approximate definition of these series.

Sweet Love Lolita -pink, light blue, white etc are main colors in this series. Velvet is the most popular cloth. To be cute and romantic is the motif embraced by designers. Most girls love sweet clothes. So, sweet Lolita dresses are the most prevailing category. The well-known Japanese star Kyoko Fukada is definitely a devotee.

Elegant Gothic Lolita – black and white are most frequently used here. They stand for mystery, terror and death. Girls who don’t like sweet clothes styles always tend to be fascinated about these simply colored dresses. In most cases, crosses silverware, black fingernails and eye shadow are often matched with these dresses. Wearers impress people by mysterious and graceful charm!

Classic Lolita – they are basically similar to sweet Lolita dresses. But simpler colors are adopted. Designers tend to express their understated yet elegant fashion concepts. So, tan and white are always found. Less lacework is used on skirts. But lotus leaf becomes the most obvious feature. Since the design seems a little unadorned, these dresses more fit newcomers for the Lolita world.

Lolita Isn’t Equal to Cosplay!

Gothic & Lolita refers to a kind of clothing style. Cosplay means a sort of roll play activity. Don’t mix them up please. To be honest, a lot of people misunderstand this because many anime roles appear with gothic & Lolita clothes. For example, Sakura Kinomoto from Card Captor Sakura, Chii from Chobits etc are popular characters in anime. Both of them wear gothic & Lolita clothes. This undoubtedly directly causes the misunderstanding.

Lolita is the Gadget for the Aristocratic?

In the drama, Peach wants to spend huge sums on buying Lolita clothes. This is just because she isfascinated about the brand of Baby. In Japan, these Lolita dresses are always sold on prices more than one thousand. However, there are many girls in Japan and Hong Kong who love to make Lolita clothes personally. The cost is about 100 dollars. This price is much lower than many branded clothes. So, it just dependson whether you are interested in doing it!

Do Lolita Dresses only Attract Attention from YoungGirls?

In Japan, except young girls, many mature females are also attracted by Lolita dresses. Pink House is exactly a brand loved by a lot of Japanese moms. It roots in a Canadian movie “Anne of Green Gables”. But it has been Japanization. Original countryside and graceful style has disappeared.

Lolita is the Gadget for the Aristocratic?

In the drama, Peach wants to spend huge sums on buying Lolita clothes. This is just because she is fascinated about the brand of Baby. In Japan, these Lolita dresses are always sold on prices more than one thousand. However, there are many girls in Japan and Hong Kong who love to make Lolita clothes personally. The cost is about 100 dollars. This price is much lower than many branded clothes. So, it just depends on whether you are interested in doing it!

Do Lolita Dresses only Attract Attention from Young Girls?

In Japan, except young girls, many mature females are also attracted by Lolita dresses. Pink House is exactly a brand loved by a lot of Japanese moms. It roots in a Canadian movie “Anne of Green Gables”. But it has been Japanization. Original countryside and graceful style has disappeared.

Psychology of Lolita Girls

Like it or not, Lolita isn’t only a kind of hot clothing trend, but also a way for the young to express their emotion. Or, it’s a method for people to make up their confidence and protect themselves. Like psychologist Erickson say, the young is in aperplexing condition. They have dense innocence and dreams. They desire to get rid of the limitation of the reality and be noticed, understood and accepted.

Step into the Lolita world, you may also find one touching your heartstrings there!

===end of the guest post===

Kirin’s opinion
I’ve always wanted to write something about Lolita but it’s just too difficult for me because I don’t dress like that myself. As for myself, I’m not wearing any of those Lolita styles or dresses from Pink House. haha! But yeah, I know someone in her 40s in Japan who loves the dress from Pink House.

cheap cosmetics and some apparel zakka store
It’s DEMO
store locations: various places in Japan (the pictures for this post were taken at the store in Shinjuku Myload.)

It’s DEMO is a kind of store similar to Sony Plaza, for example. Hmm…maybe smaller than Sony Plaza, so it’s closer to Mini Pla maybe? You can find one of the most popular cosmetics among hundreds of thousands of them in the market. But if you want to see more products, I recommend you should check out Tokyu Hands or LOFT instead of this type of small store.

You can see a small crown shaped sticker labeled on each product. That means the product received a high evaluation at a reliable cosmetics review site such as @cosme. I never fail to check out this website whenever I try a new cosmetics brand or skin care product.

24-hour foundation is very popular. It’s considered natural cosmetics. Because the ingredients are considered not stressful to our skin, we can wear this foundation even while we are sleeping and there should be no problem. You may think why do we have to wear a makeup even while sleeping? I think this product is created for the women who don’t want to wash off makeup when they spend a night with a boyfriend. ^ ^;; Then how about those who don’t mind washing it off? They can still enjoy this product because it’s gentle to the skin as much as to be worn a whole day without any skin trouble.

Oh yes, I’ve seen this product everywhere! It’s so so popular, I know that. I have a lipstick (the right one in the picture) but I don’t see what’s so good about it. I don’t think I will buy it again. I have a lip gloss produced from Bizen series and that will do.

Bihada Ichizoku brand. Somehow I’ve never tried any of their products yet…Bihada Ichizoku products are usually quite popular.

Isn’t it funny that they even created an anime! I didn’t know that~~ XD

Dejavu brand is also popular with its mascara. They can be removed with hot water very easily.

Again, same as Sony Plaza, it’s simply fun to check out the store to see what’s new and popular, even though I’m not so much into makeup.

My husband enjoys cooking so much now. Everything he cooks taste better than what I cook, and these days he cooks every weekend and even some weekdays when he has free time. I feel that I can’t cook any more, when he cooks much better. :p

So this is the dinner I had several days ago.
Weekend Dinner 4


1: Tonjiru
You can think of it as a miso soup with ingredients like various kind of vegetables such as Daikon (Japanese radish), carrot, Gobou (burdock), green onion (Japanese leek), Konnyaku and thinly sliced pork. It can be a main dish. I personally like to put some thinly sliced ginger when I cook it, but my husband didn’t. He cooked large amount at a time with less miso, and each time when we heated it, we added some miso. By doing that every time we ate it, the soup smelled nice, nevertheless it was made and preserved in a fridge. The point is “Don’t boil the soup after miso is added, because the good smell will fade!”

2: simmered Kabocha, as in the cooking tutorial page

3: Natto

4: steamed rice

Weekend Dinner 5

1: Nikujaga, as in the cooking tutorial page
This was yummy!

2: steamed Hijiki and vegetables (Hijiki-ni)
This tasted so much better than the one I’ve cooked so far or even the one his mother cooks! I honestly thought he could change my preferences. I thought I didn’t like Japanese cuisine so much but he could change that. I seriously think so!

3: Enoki mushroom and wakame seaweed salad
I loved this too! He said he put too much seasoning but it was very tasty. According to him, it’s very easy to cook. Soak the cut Enoki mushrooms and dried wakame seaweed in some water to cover them, microwave for 2 minutes, squeeze water and mix with Chinese chicken soup stock, soy sauce, sake, and mayo. He said he put a touch of Chinese chill bean sauce and sesame oil too. Easy huh? But tastes good!

4: steamed rice

I feel as if I were a husband of him, being attracted by his cooking. I mean, people here say that house wives must be good at cooking in order to keep her husband all the time. Good cooking will make husbands return home earlier and stop them from flirting with other women. I didn’t understand it so well because I believed there was always better food outside served in a fancy restaurant, for example. But now I feel for the first time in my life what that really means.

At first I was satisfied with being served by him. But nowadays I totally love and enjoy whatever he cooks and I’d rather try to eat at home than outside! So this is it! (I’m not flirting with other man, so no worry for that point. lol) My mother was very poor at cooking (luckily my father didn’t leave) and my cooking is just OK. So I didn’t really pay much attention to home cooking. But home cooking can be so tasty, never make us bored, and much healthier. (I’m impressed he often simmers finely cut onions instead of stir-frying it, or also boils meat first to reduce fat!) I never expected to be kind of hooked by his food! :O His cooking has totally grabbed my heart (stomach)! Do you have a similar experience? I wish I were good at cooking as much as he is!

Apple’s food post from Kansai!

===Apple’s post starts from here===

Of course I was in Kansai, and I ought to write about their specialty food…food like Kushiage!

However, when my friends brought me to an izakaya, what caught my interest more was Yakitori.

There is Yakitori sold in my country (Singapore) too.

However, you would only find popular parts like chicken thighs, chicken wings, minced chicken balls, chicken karaage, chicken skin and some pork meat with fat in the yakitori stalls in Singapore.

So my idea of yakitori was Japan’s version of chicken kebabs or satays.

In my first trip to Japan some years ago, I was in the basement supermarket and there was this lovely sweet smoky aroma which led me to the Yakitori stall. I was about to buy it when I realised the range of choices was huge there!

I had no idea what they were at all, but with my limited Japanese vocabulary knowledge then, I recognised the words ‘heart’, ‘neck’, ‘gizzards’ in some of the descriptions of each stick, and I stopped, and I walked away.

Fast forward to now, I was sitting in an izakaya with my Japanese friends, and they ordered Yakitori for us!

If you’re wondering why Yakitori offers you strange chicken parts, it’s because in the past, chicken meat was very popular and expensive. So, clever business-minded stall owners decided to use the bits and pieces of chicken discarded by high-class restaurants and sell them in skewered sticks!

So, basically, you can eat Seseri (neck), Hatsu (Heart), Muneniku (Breast), Tebasaki (wing), Teiru (tail), Sunazuri (gizzards), Momo (thigh), Kawa (Skin)… There are also livers, the bottoms, soft bones, Tsukune (Chicken meatballs), and most of the times there are pork parts too.

I still do not dare to give strange chicken parts a try, but that night, my friends highly recommended trying seseri (neck) and soft bones. It was delicious. Seseri tastes just like chicken meat, except it has more muscles. You should try it! And soft bones are chewy and crunchy and goes well with beer.

Yakitori is more of a Kanto (Eastern part of Japan) food. While Yakitori was popular in Kanto, because of the abolishment of the regulation of flour in the Kansai (Western part of Japan) area in 1951, the use of flour flourished in Kansai, and popular foods like Okonomiyaki, Takoyaki, and Kushiage were born.

Kushiage was also skewered meat and vegetables on a stick, somewhat the same idea as Yakitori, but Kushiage is covered in batter, deep-fried in oil, and usually eaten with different kinds of sauces or salt.

Here is Kushiage.

It really is very popular in Kansai. You can see many Kushiage stalls and restaurants everywhere.

I prefer Yakitori to Kushiage though. I’m not a fan of deep-fried food.

How about you? Have you tried either of these skewered food before? Which do you prefer?

If you haven’t tried them before, do they appeal to you? Would you be adventurous enough to try all the strange parts that are not commonly eaten in your country?

===end of the post===

Kirin’s opinion
I also had Kushikatsu or Kushiage in Osaka before, but if I compare it with Yakitori…I think I like Yakitori more. But I like Karaage (Japanese styled fried chicken) more. I didn’t know the reason why the use of flour is so popular in Kansai. Thank you for sharing the knowledge, I’m learning from you!

***Giveaway offered by Apple***
Apple has recently created a page ‘Happy Girls Cute Food’, where you can learn how to make cute, girly food. From now till 30 April, she’s doing a giveaway of some cute food items from Osaka! ‘Like’ her page and you will instantly have a chance to win something for yourself! Go to Happy Girls Cute Food for more details~!

Pi-chan got a haircut lately.
As always, some people will think it’s not appropriate for Shih Tzu dogs to wear such a short hair, but this makes her easy to walk in the sun during spring and summer season. Well, today’s post is not just that. I’m feeling so sad because I’m leaving for Australia tomorrow. I’m spending the next 40 days in Australia half for work, half for fun…but being separated from Pi-chan makes me so sad.


Everyday, I was thinking I’ve got X days more to be able to stay with Pi-chan. I’ve tried to spend as much time as possible with her to remember how she looks, how she smells, how she acts, and etc. Now I’ve got less than 24 hours from right at this moment when I’m writing this… To be honest, I feel like crying. I guess I’ve never been away from her so long and I’m too much attached to her in everyday’s life. I’ve told her over and over again that I will come back about a month later and I am always thinking about her even if we are apart. I believe she understands that.

I’ve been wondering how I could say good bye just for now to Pi-chan when I leave home tomorrow. But I know I should not cry in front of her. It’s so tough to hold sadness and tears. The sadness sets off the excitement and I feel numb or neutral. I’m asking myself, “Didn’t I like travelling more than anything?” “Wasn’t it my dream to become a world traveller and that’s why I’ve been struggling to work from internet so far?”

I’m getting confused. What’s the real happiness to me now? I used to like shopping kawaii clothing, furniture, zakka, cups, bags, shoes and etc. so much but lately I’d rather feel like spending that time with Pi-chan napping together. I’m still confused with this change. It’s not the first time to be separated from her due to my travel. But now I wonder which is happy to me: to travel around the world or to stay at one good place with Pi-chan?

Writing makes me calm down. I feel better now. That’s why I love writing. Whenever I’m confused with sadness, madness, disappointment, anger, frustration, anxiety, depression or any negative feelings, I simply write them down and feel better. I know this will be a fruitful trip and I’ll for sure update TKE from Australia so please remain tuned! *Wish me good luck~~*

Apple’s post about her trip to Kansai continues.

===Apple’s post starts from here===

Kobe is a very beautiful place.

If you are there, you may notice something slightly different about it.

Firstly, if you go to Osaka first, then to Kobe, you can immediately feel the difference.

The first thing you are going to notice is probably the cleanliness and the buildings of the city. It has many beautiful buildings, especially if you go to Kitano-cho, where you can see all the Western-style residences from the 19th century!

And then the second thing you are going to notice is the fashion sense of everybody there!

Now, I have to tell you, this is the only time I have dressed in a terrible manner when I’m in Japan. Hahaha!

I didn’t know it would be this cold when I went, and all I had were thin-material Spring clothes with me. The stores all sold Spring clothes too, and I was freezing all the time because I couldn’t buy any warm, thick jackets!

My thickest outer was this Rilakkuma outer, and that was what I wore most of the time when I needed to spend lots of time in the outdoors when I was in Japan.

I looked ridiculous but it kept me warm, so I wore it. Also, when I was in Osaka, it was no problem. Everyone dressed any way they like. I didn’t feel any stress for dressing in a ridiculous manner.

Then I went to Kobe, dressed in the same way too. My friend drove us around so I didn’t feel it immediately.

But when we got down the car and went down the streets…

I wanted to die.

All around me were superbly well-dressed people.

From young students to the old people. I wonder how the heck can a city produce every single person who dress so well!

Hello I’m from Kobe and I’m stylish and I know it.

I’m sorry I didn’t take any pictures of the people there. I was overwhelmed.

And anyway, today’s post is actually about Kitano Ijinkan where all the beautiful foreign residences were.

They are still there even though the owners are not. Many of the residences have now become museums and are opened to tourists to take a look around. The entrance fees range from 200 to 500yen.

Here’s a ticket counter!

We went to one of the houses.

Because my friend told us they have some magical chairs inside!!!

No! These are not the ones!

So why did I put that picture?

Because I took that picture. That’s all.

The owner of this house collected many different kinds of statues. Most of them look really strange to me. I wonder what kind of person this owner is. Who collects such statues?

See all these statues!

Right??

Why do people spend good money buying strange statues that make your hair stand at night?

Speaking of night, these are the lamps they use at night.

However!!

I forgive this owner for his strange taste in furniture, because he has these!

These chairs!

Of course I made a wish in the chair!

So if you are in Kitano-cho, why don’t you check out this place? This blog has beautiful places of the place!

You should go if you like to look at beautiful houses.

Finally, if you want to see how I was dressed:

Yes, facepalm all you want.

Beside me is my movie star friend. Told you everyone in Kobe dressed well!!!!

===end of Apple’s post===

Kirin’s opinion
The weather was quite unusual while you were in Japan. It shouldn’t be that cold. I’m sorry you had to freeze… Most of the shops sell clothing for the next season so there’s no wonder you couldn’t find winter clothing at all in March. I guess early to mid February is the last chance to grab the winter clothes here, because they will start selling spring clothes since it’s still in the middle of the winter. lol

Yes, Kobe is like that. Girls curl their hair well, dress well, and act elegantly. Pretty much different from Osaka. Those who like Kobe wouldn’t like Osaka and vice versa. So I’m more like Osakan type of person who dislike Kobe. lol

***Giveaway offered by Apple***
Apple has recently created a page ‘Happy Girls Cute Food’, where you can learn how to make cute, girly food. From now till 30 April, she’s doing a giveaway of some cute food items from Osaka! ‘Like’ her page and you will instantly have a chance to win something for yourself! Go to Happy Girls Cute Food for more details~!

Look, Apple shares an interesting post about love hotel in Japan!

===Apple’s post starts from here===

Do you know love hotels in Japan?

These are short-stay hotels, typically for couples, but recently I see some love hotels offering family and friends packages too.

Love hotels in Japan got attention because some love hotels have really interesting rooms!

You can see from this article here some of the interesting rooms love hotels offer.

If you read the above link, you will notice that a number of rooms are from a particular Love Hotel called Hotel Loire!

Hotel Loire is in Osaka, and since I was in Osaka, I decided to go there with my boyfriend!!!!

It was my first time to a love hotel, so I wanted to choose an interesting one like that! Unfortunately, I was there on a Friday night, so most interesting rooms are already taken up.

This is Hotel Loire, and to get there, you have to walk a super long distance from the JR station. It’s located along an expressway actually. Here’s a map if you are interested.

When we reached there, we were disappointed at the ‘normal’ bedrooms available. Where were all the nonsense alien abduction room or doctor’s office or subway car rooms?!?!?!?! There were none!!! T^T

So, anyway, you choose your room at the lobby. There’s a button for you to press to choose your room, and once you have chosen your room, you take the lift to your room, and you can then have fun inside your room.

There are lots of different plans. We took the overnight-stay plan for a one-time charge of a whooping 10500yen.

So this is our room complete with a small Japanese garden. Pretty impressive actually.

Behind the gates, lies our bed!

From the vanity area.

Massage chairs! In front of TV which plays porn and other normal channels.

There is free coffee and tea too on the shelves. There’s also a vending refrigerator right in your own room. So don’t worry if you get thirsty or hungry.

Room service is available. You can also order DVDs and cosplay costumes.

You will notice a small wooden box near your entrance. It has 2 doors. One to your room, and the other door is to the corridor.

When you order anything, a light will lit up to inform you that your order has arrived. You just have to open that wooden door, and whatever you order will be inside it. So genius! I love it! You don’t have to interact with anybody at all. Total privacy!

In the vanity area, you will find all kinds of vanity items like moisturisers, shaving cream, face masks, toner…whatever you need you will find there! Whatever you didn’t think you need are provided too.

In our bathroom, there’s a jacuzzi tub and you can change the lights in your bathroom. I don’t know why they think red spotlights are romantic or something?! It makes the bathroom looks like your dead ex-girlfriend may rise up from the tub or something.

There’s also an inflatable bed inside the bathroom HAHAHA.

You pay through a machine in your room when your time is up, and you will leave the hotel through a back door.

Sorry for lack of pictures! I took a video of the room introducing it for TKE, but I hate my voice, so I decided not to torture you. But I hope this is informative enough about how love hotels work!

Will you try a love hotel in your trip to Japan next time?

===end of the post===

Kirin’s opinion
Thank you Apple so much for writing about love hotels in Japan. You even tried to make a video? Oh I wanted to see it, but it’s OK ^ ^ Making a video takes a lot of time and effort. Some love hotels have left us, the Japanese some nasty image because of the cheap and loud interior, besides that there is always a sort of an air of embarrassment for the couples to use them. However, the industry seems to have upgraded the facility and the entire image with interesting design and concept so that more and more people can use it more comfortably. Love hotel is even called “leisure hotel” or “boutique hotel” today, which I think is created by the industry to upgrade the image totally. Nonetheless, love hotel is still the most common way we call it.

***Giveaway offered by Apple***
Apple has recently created a page ‘Happy Girls Cute Food’, where you can learn how to make cute, girly food. From now till 30 April, she’s doing a giveaway of some cute food items from Osaka! ‘Like’ her page and you will instantly have a chance to win something for yourself! Go to Happy Girls Cute Food for more details~!