Toilet On My Mind

While looking for apartments last year, I remember I spoke with two friends. One of them an American-Taiwanese and the other, a Singaporean. The American-Taiwanese said he prefers apartments where the bathroom and toilet are separate. In case you didn’t know, it is very common for bathroom and toilets to be separated in Japan. The Singaporean girl on the other hand, said she prefers them together since we’re so used to having them together. I asked the guy why he preferred them separate and he said he’s got no idea. He just prefers them that way and it seems more classy. And the girl said she’s never understood why the bathroom and toilet ever had to be separated.

These two comments while different in an obvious way, led me to wonder why the bathroom and toilet are at many times separate here in Japan. I asked a Japanese friend and he wasn’t able to provide an answer that was enough to make me stop questioning. Only until recently, I had an epiphany while using my own toilet (which is separate from the bathroom, by the way) and I think I finally got the answer.

Remember how we used to be amazed by Japanese toilet seats that have functions like those that spray water to clean your behind after you’re done with your business? And for women, they have the bidet. Apart from that, since using the toilet during winter is literally a pain in the ass, they also have the seat warmer function so you can comfortably sit on your toilet seat without fear of freezing your butt cheeks. So how does all this make it necessary for the toilet to be separated from the bathroom?

Logically, all the above functions require electricity, and only when the toilet stands by itself can there be a wall socket for the supply of power. Now, how’s that for an answer?

Never imagined I’d spend so much time thinking about the toilet.

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