Naru Apato-Mogie!

As I recently have promised my dear aunt Mogie that I would upload some pictures of my humble abode in Japan I felt it necessary to follow through...and so here is the grand tour for all of you who are curious as to what my apato in Japan looks like!  And yes, it is much bigger than I thought that it would be, but it is not BIG by any means.

This is what I would see if you were knocking on my front door before I opened it to (maybe???) let you in.  The entryway I guess some folks would call it.  I call it the place where I leave my shoes, coats and umbrellas.

And this is what you would see when (if???) I let you in.  The toilet room is the door on the left there and the bath/washing machine room is just off to the right there.  Straight ahead is the kitchen/eating space and then the room with the yoga mat on the floor and the couch is my bedroom/yoga space/movie viewing room.  The nasty reflection back there is coming off of my back door which opens to the art studio.  Oh, I will mention here that the floors in the entryway/kitchen are wood and the floors in the bed/yoga space are tatami (woven bamboo) mats.  You NEVER wear shoes on tatami, believe me, Japanese people will really freak out.  Really.

Okay, I know I said I wouldn't talk about potties anymore, but just one more time cause this is cool.  This is the toilet room off to the left in the last photo and my, well (western, obviously) toilet!  It is the only thing in the room and as you will notice there is a faucet and a basin on top of the commode in lieu of having a whole separate sink in the room.  Saves time and water like this: When you flush the toilet the faucet on top starts running and you can wash your hands with that water and as you wash your hands that water then runs into the bowl of the toilet filling it for next time you need to use the toilet with your soapy water.  Genius I tell you.  Why don't we do this in America?  This is a standard toilet in most homes and restaurants and the like.  Seriously genius.  Don't even get me started on the TP roll dispenser.  It is amazing too.

And if you peered into the room across from the toilet room you would find this; my washing/bathroom.  There is a standard sink in here with a mirror and the washing machine you see here and a door that opens into the shower/bathroom.  The shower room is quite large and you can sit or stand or whatever in there really as the shower head is adjustable/movable and the tub is quite a bit deeper than the standard American tub.  When I sit in it it covers my shoulders.  Those flat plastic things you see there in between the tub and the washer are to cover the tub so you can reuse the water.  Japanese people don't get into the tub when they are dirty, they use it after they have bathed in the shower and just use it to soak, so when they are done they can cover the water and use it again the next day or hours later or whatever.  Another good idea, but I never do it and use the tub as I was trained to do back home; to take a bath in.  For shame!

Here is a better shot of the tub.  See, it's deeper!  Deeper is better I can assure you...

Okay, so we have arrived in the kitchen!  This is the cooking/washing area, the same side of the apato as the wash/bath room for reference.  Featured here is from right to left; my refrigerator/freezer (Japanese size!) with my microwave/oven on top of it and my toaster oven on top of that, my sink, dish drying/dinner preparing area, my stove top i.e. glorified camping stove.  Behind the sink is where I keep many dry foods and dishes (European style which is a little weird considering where I am, but whatever) and in the foreground there is my moving island which stores food and serves as a floating eating/preparation space.

This is the opposite side of the kitchen.  The table with my exercise ball which I often just use as a chair, bamboo shelving above it and the bookcase in the corner.  Loads of art on the wall there and heaps of stuff in the corner on the wall are my home phone, (yes I have one!  How about that!?) the island intercom system (announces important things to all of us at its discretion like when the dentist is coming over and if a ferry is canceled or delayed.  So helpful when I can understand it I'm sure.) and a phone that allows me to talk to whomever may be at my door when they ring.  The doors separating the rooms are sliding of course and can be opened wide or totally closed leaving the spaces separate.  I love the sliding doors in my house and there is also one that separates the kitchen and the entry way.  Really does wonders for heating/cooling quickly.

Now into the bed/yoga/whatever room.  My bed is there folded up on the right side.  I left it out so you could see it, but it can be put away in a jiff and the room becomes a bit more spacious.  There is a table over in the corner which serves as a night stand/dinner table/computer workspace and myriad other purposes.  Nothing too exciting here.

And here it all is from the back door.  Oh and yes, all of the lighting is FLORESCENT! and I LOVE it!  (sarcasm does not usually work via written communication, sorry.)

Here is the room from the kitchen.  You can see the AC/heater on the wall above the couch and no, I never sit on the couch.  It folds out into a futon (American idea of futon) style sleeper, but it is not that comfortable.  The floor is better in my opinion. 

Okay and finally the art studio.  A wonderful space to get lost in on any night that allows me a little time to escape.  Directly above this space are the lines that I hang my laundry on to dry and opposite this side of the porch is where I store my recycling ect.  Not a ton of space but I'm makin' it work.

That's it for me.  Off to the studio for awhile before I have to climb back onto the floor for bed and work again tomorrow.  Life is flowing full throttle here in Naru!

Be well tomodachis!