On Tuesday I arrived at a fabulous onsen in Tateshima, expecting to simmer in their hot spring, gaze at splendid autumn leaves in luxurious quietude, and stuff myself with regional specialties, but when I got to my room I found…this.
I mean, what the heckin’ heck? Five remotes to control a tatami-floored room at a traditional Japanese inn?
Fortunately, they were (mostly) labeled, so I could decipher that (from left to right) they variously controlled 1) the sound system, 2) some equipment that shall forever remain a mystery, 3) the room lights, 4) the air conditioner/heater, 5) the TV.
The room lights thingie actually turned out to be useful, because whoever installed the light switches used some sort of ninja invisibility spell on them and I would have had to sleep in the glaring fluorescence all night if I hadn’t had the magic wand.
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The Last Tea Bowl Thief was chosen as an Editor’s Pick for
Best Mystery, Thriller & Suspense on Amazon
“A fascinating mix of history and mystery.” —Booklist
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Jonelle Patrick writes novels set in Japan, produces the monthly e-magazine Japanagram, and blogs at Only In Japan and The Tokyo Guide I Wish I’d Had
Only In Japan 
I love your funny stories about Japan. I recently went there for the first time and now I want to live there!
Ahahahaha my sistah! Same thing happened to me. I have to tell you that sadly, THERE IS NO CURE. lol You’ll just have to come live here too.
(Also, I went over to your blog and loved your take on things, but couldn’t find an email follow button. I’d love to keep up with your posts too, so if you can help out a sad blind person by pointing me to the thing that’s probably staring me in the face….)
Hi Jonelle I love your take on things too! 😁 I would love to catch up for a coffee if we do make it over there to live. We are definitely coming for a week in March next year. Keep the weird and wonderful stories coming it makes me want to move there more. 😉
You aren’t blind either…I blame wordpress as the theme Im using hasnt got a follow button. If you do go to my blog About Content Catnip page there is now a follow button. 😉
OK, now that I’m back and breathing the extremely smoky and awful San Francisco air (wildfires begone, you awful things!), I’m blaming jetlag for follow button blindness. I see the search box, I see the contact form, but somehow (like one’s own socks on the floor) I can’t find where to sign up for email updates. But I would really like to, so if it’s somewhere I’m not looking, give me a pointer…?
And ARG, the schedule gods are not smiling upon us (><;;) I'm back in Tokyo for Jan-Feb, then have to scamper back to the US for a thing I have to go to in March. Which is just one more sign that you need to move to Tokyo full time, so I can schedule coffees with you at every opportunity!
Just to set your mind at ease, #2 is the remote for the DVD player that they tossed out years ago, but in Japan you can never have a set of four so they kept it. You’re welcome.
AHAHAHAHAHAHA that is so funny (and undoubtedly true) that I may have to append your comment to the post proper!
Funny story. Similar experience in Kamaishi staying in an old family run Inn. I couldn’t decipher the damn remotes (only 2, but I had no TV in the room).
The good ending though was that the one family member who had some English was visiting, so we talked about making a guide for English speaking visitors (who they don’t get often, who they need more post earthquake and tsunami).
Ha, so your questions about the remotes could eventually save some lives! Well done. And hmm, if there was no TV, what were the remotes for? I’m guessing one must have been the heater/air conditioner, but what was the other?