The Apartment Entry

A little friend I found in the apartment. His head is facing down.
These critters can jump about a foot off the ground!

 

 

I suppose I should do an entry about my apartment... I know some people are very curious about tiny Japanese apartments. And, indeed, my apartment is a bona fide, standard issue, tiny ass Japanese apartment. Yes sir, it's got all of the modern conveniences necessary to life these days, all practically sized to fit the needs of one individual. Wow. But, I suppose its for the best really. I mean, if I had a great apartment to spend all my time in, what would be the point living in a foreign country? I could spend all day inside in Chicago right? I'll take the optimists' point of view and say that having an unimpressive apartment is inspiration to go out and see the world.

 

La Casa de Trevor

 

 

So, here is the view one is presented with upon first stepping into my apartment. From here, you can essentially see the apartment in its entirety. Kitchen on the right, bathroom on the left, living area to the fore. Oh, and of course, how could I forget the all too necessary cow oven mitt hanging on the wall to the left. Certainly a major selling point for my apartment.

 

Where is the dryer?

Tofu!

 

 

Turning your head approximately 10-15 degrees to the right will reveal the wonderfully convenient washer/kitchen combo. Yes, you can cook your food and clean your clothes or dishes all in one easy-to-manage space. It's amazing how much time I spend shuffling back and forth throughout this 1m x 2m space. WARNING: Dishes do NOT go in the washing machine. 

A roof, four walls, a floor, and a door.

 

 

Three paces forward will bring you through the front hall/laundry room/kitchen/bathroom area into the main living area. Here, you can see my lovely Western style bed (a futon NOT on the floor), television, table, book shelves, low-down couch-type thingy, and a rack for drying clothes inside (come wintertime), air conditioner (thank God), porch, floor, etc...

 

The vast variety of my professional wardrobe.

 

Another eight paces will bring you to the porch door of my apartment. Yup, that's it... this is my apartment in all its splendor. This is where all the magic happens. Be jealous... very jealous.

One day a torrential downpour caused my street to temporarily become a river.
I had to wade my way home, shoes in hand, Huck Finn style.

Yeah...

 

Now take nine paces back toward the front door and turn to the right. Here, you will see my very efficiently designed bathroom. Again, my apartment is fortunately fitted with Western amenities, so I have a toilet I can sit down on. I have encountered the Japanese-style toilets, but that's an adventure for another blog post. Yup, efficiency is the name of the game here and in a space the size of most of your closets I have my toilet, sink, and shower. The one gripe I have about my apartment is the incredibly tiny shower it has. I don't know if it was a matter of design for Japanese people or a complete disregard for the comfort of bathers, but whoever made this shower made it so tiny that I have to stand width-wise down the length of the shower. I have to wash half of my body at a time, and I can't turn around without being attacked by my shower curtain like a wet plastic ghoul lurking in the bathroom.

Yes mom, it is always this clean.

 

 

 

All gripes aside though, I really do love the place! It's finally started to feel like home to me, and I get some satisfaction knowing that it's all mine. It's a comforting feeling to know that I can move anywhere in the world and burrow out my own little niche so that where no matter what, I have a place to call my own.

 

 

And I will leave you with a shot of the night sky from my porch.