Peter Van Bossche; other photos by Fyllis Hockman unless otherwise noted

How often do a toilet and a tea ceremony form perfect metaphors for the culture of a country? But so it is in the Land of the Rising Sun.

The toilet falls into the realm of delightful personal discoveries. First a warm toilet seat along with musical options with a variety of buttons that cleaned more areas with water spray than I have nether-region body parts, a portion of the large bathroom mirror that remained perfectly clear even after an exceptionally steamy shower which co-incidentally was the most invigorating I've ever had. Plus a sophisticated hair dryer with more settings than I had hair styles. All a testament to Japanese ingenuity – they apparently don't only make better cars. However, as I was to discover on our hikes through the countryside, these benefits were not always available. In fact, toilets in general were not always available – or stall showers (but more on that later).

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