Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Will Miss #303 - love hotels

 "Hotel Vanilla Sweet", perhaps for candy and cake lovers who need to get some loving of a different flavor.

I have never been to a love hotel, but I like the existence of them for several reasons. First of all, the names and designs are generally pretty goofy so they're good for a laugh. Second, they are meticulously clean for a place which is designed around allowing people to pay by the hour to tryst with one another. They don't carry the same connotation of beg bugs and stained sheets that similar hotels do in the U.S. Finally, their existence and presence in many areas is yet another reflection that the Japanese are not incredibly uptight about sex and sexuality. They are the answer to close quarters living in small apartments and a need to find privacy elsewhere.

I'll miss love hotels for the laughs and for what they represent about Japanese culture.