Where I Stayed in Japan – Part 1

I thought about doing a timeline of my trip, but I suck at that so – THEMES!

This is my room at Shunko-in (Shunko Temple). I shared a partitioned space with one other woman, in the other part of the larger space, there were four women. So, we had six total sharing one “room.” No shoes allowed inside, slept on futons, and had pillows filled with some kind of flexible plastic beads that we dubbed “faux-roni” as in “fake macaroni.”

I have never slept better in my life. Except on (prescription) drugs. The comforters were very comfy. I want one at my house – I’m thinking Koreatown is probably the best bet to find this stuff domestically.

My room at Shunko-in.

I had no closet or shelves, so I lived out a of bag on the floor, which made my side of the room very messy.

My (messy) side of the room.

We didn’t have an attached bathroom or shower, so we had to haul ourselves outside every time we wanted to wash up or use the potty. It dropped well below 45 degrees most nights, so you must be thinking, “Ugh, how awful to use an outdoor toilet!” NOT SO! HEATED TOILET SEATS, AMERICA! The secret of the comfortable, yet chilly, bathroom is heated toilet seats! FYI, people in colder states, the heated toilet seat is worth the investment!

Also, not having shoes in the house is a brilliant idea. I wish everyone would do it. I just can’t get behind the “no bare feet” thing. I prefer bare feet. I think it forces people to take better care of their feet’s appearance. You never know what someone is hiding in socks.

I know what you’re thinking, “How exciting! Your basic living arrangements in Japan are so blog-worthy!” but I fucking loved it, and I am still amazed at how well I got along with five other women for ten days. It’s a goddamn miracle.

Of course, in other parts of this series, I will show you some actual gorgeous pictures of Shunko-in. But I just had to share this stuff first – imagine a long day of wandering around a foreign place, five miles on your feet, and falling into a firm, supportive cloud on the floor of a well-heated, very clean room. It was perfect!