Living in a Japanese Home
07 Jan 2007
This article is being posted now as our internet has just been reconnected. We decided to move from our apartment on-base into a Japanese home. The move was not an easy process, especially with me at almost 9 months pregnant, but we wanted to experiences the real Japanese lifestyle while we have the opportunity to do so.
What has this "Japanese Experience" entailed so far? Cold nights, energy conservation, fumbling with poor Japanese for appliance, gas, and internet installations, and finding time to make gifts for our new neighbors in order to introduce ourselves (customary in Japan). These are the main reasons the base seems to discourage moving outside. However, do not let all of these initial frustrations deter you from living in Japan.
Our house is very large for a Japanese home-over 1500 square feet and containing five bedrooms if you include the two tatami rooms. We also have three parking spots, which is rare for Japan. Expect in most houses for only one or maybe two and do not expect so much room. We just lucked out with having perfect timing. Our house is in Ebina city, but it is closer to the heart of Zama. There are farms all around us and if we look carefully we can see the mountains from the room containing the computer. Our particular street has large houses and small apartment complexes and is slightly less urban than most areas in Japan. It's a good choice for a baby.
Besides the large size, we have some other benefits to our house. We were able to borrow appliances from the housing office on-base, and our kitchen was actually large enough for an American-style stove and refrigerator. If you go house-hunting, expect most houses to have only Japanese stoves (burners and a tiny "fish oven" without a standard oven) and Japanese refrigerators (always skinny and most of the time small, but sometimes very tall). Cooking is mainly on gas appliances in Japan, so expect to learn how to light an oven if yours is not self-lighting. It seems that all Japanese kitchens also have a storage area underneath the kitchen floor. We have been told this is used for rice and potatoes and other items you would normally keep in a pantry. We use ours to store bulk foods, alcohol, and storage devices. There is not much built-in cabinet space in most Japanese homes.
Our living and dining rooms inhabit one area which is the most common setup in a Japanese house. This makes heating more efficient because gas and electricity are expensive. We use kerosene heaters to heat these rooms when we are at home in the evenings. If you have small children, it is advisable to invest in electric heaters for the bedrooms at night as Kerosene can put off carbon monoxide. Most Japanese houses also have Air Conditioning units, but there is no insulation in Japanese walls, so they are not very efficient for heating from what I have seen so far. We have carpeted floors in much of the house which helps keep in the heat. Many Japanese houses have wood floors, so take that into consideration when you think about electric and gas bills.
Laundry is another concern in a Japanese house. We had been told to use a laundromat by other people who said it was too expensive to do laundry at home. However, the Japanese do it all the time. What's their secret? Cold water is not expensive in Japan and neither is sunlight or wind. The Japanese wash their laundry in a washing machine and then hang it out to dry either on their balcony or, like us, on a clothesline. You can purchase items to help you organize your drying laundry in any grocery store or Daiso. You will notice nearly every sunny day that at least some people have laundry hanging out to dry. Japanese also use a different type of bed (what they call a futon) and these are often hung over a balcony to air out during the day. You can choose to sleep on these if you wish, but we managed to get our queen-sized bed into our house. Do not attempt to fit a king-sized bed into a Japanese house.
Japanese bathrooms are also very interesting. Unlike a western bathroom which has a sink, tub/shower, and toilet all in one room, each item has its own separate space. Toilets have their own little rooms with a closing door, usually a window, and a towel rack. This is because toilets in Japan have small indents in their tanks that can be used to rinse your hands with the clean water filling the tank. After all, does it matter that you wash your hands in water that will later just rinse away waste? Most houses have a separate tub and shower contained in one big, fully-tiled room. Japanese rinse away dirt in the shower and then soak in the tub to relax. The hot water can be reused by many family members because they rinse off before entering the tub and, after everyone is done rinsing, many drain the tub water into their clothes washers. We are a little too Americanized and usually just use the shower portion of our bathroom, though I have soaked in the tub a few times. After you have finished your cleansing, simply use the shower head to rinse off the entire room. There is no need to worry about spilling or splashing in a Japanese shower. The sink and mirrors for the bathrooms are usually outside the other two rooms so that you can use them without disturbing anyone finishing his or her business. Be cautious with hot water in Japan; it is heated with gas and can be pricey.
As an added bonus, most Japanese houses come equipt with Tatami rooms and a storage loft. We have found our loft to be quite useful as there are not many closets or cupboards in our house. Tatami rooms are rooms in the traditional Japanese style with tatami (or reed-mat) flooring and sliding paper windows. They are great for traditional Japanese bedrooms with futon mattresses or for guest entertainment with a tea ceremony. Do not put furniture directly on tatami mats as it will damage the tatami and your homeowner will expect you to pay the large fee to replace it. Also, it can be expensive to replace the shoji paper on the windows, so be mindful not to damage it.
Since we have not lived here long, I will post follow-up articles with additional information on our experiences of living in a Japanese house. Please forgive me for time lapses between, but being a new mom takes time!