The Truth About Japanese Toilets

There are a lot of things you’re prepared for when you travel. You plan for using foreign currency, you may study a few words and phrases of a foriegn language, you pack according to your destination’s different weather patterns. But how often do you study up on toilets?

Depending on where you’re headed, you may be treated to nothing more than a hole in the ground to aim for. Or maybe you’re headed to Europe and you’ve heard of a bidet, but don’t actually know what to do with it.

Or maybe you’re going to Japan. Have you read about the toilets in Japan? Do you know what to expect? Because in all of my reading and studying up on travel and other cultures, this little tidbit never came up until last week when I commented to a co-worker that another female co-worker had the strange habit of flushing the toilet five or six times in a row while she was in a stall. I assumed it was because she was trying to create a wall of sound for privacy, and my co-worker agreed, saying, “Right, like the toilets in Japan that make noise for you.”

Hmmm?

So I emailed my friend who is currently living in Tokyo and asked if it was true. Do Japanese toilets really cover up your noises with its own noises?

“it’s true!  toilets are frequently equipped with music or some kind of sound system to make noise that is noisier than weeing and pooing noises (also drunken vomiting is very common among salarymen).  and yes it’s basically shameful to admit that you release noisy substances from your ends. more for J women than anything else.  they’re prudish as anything.”

(Comments about the prudishness of Japanese women are the opinion of the email writer, and in no way reflect the views of this blog.)

And this is why you should travel. Because you can read about museums and landmarks from home, but you’ll never learn about the toilets unless you go. (Pun. Ha.) 

Two Reasons to Visit Missouri’s Botanical Gardens

First of all, the Missouri Botanical Gardens has a super cool URL. Far cooler than you would expect anyone associated with a botanic garden to come up with: www.mobot.org. Just imagine, your friends ask you where you’re going for the weekend and you say, “You know, just headed to Mo Bot for an afternoon.”

Next, there’s some very cool stuff to see there. From now until October 31, “The Missouri Botanical Garden welcomes the passionate pop art of Niki, an exhibition of 40 playful, larger-than-life mosaic sculptures in a rainbow of colors and materials.” These are the kinds of things you would expect to see at the Centre Pompidou, not in the middle of Missouri, but there they are.

Every state has it’s parks, gardens, lakes, and recreational areas. Get maps from your local AAA or do some prowling around online to see what’s near you. A quick weekend break can help get you in the mood for a longer trip, and it can also be a great way to test out a new travel buddy before you commit to a bigger, more expensive adventure.

Try a Rockin New Theme Park This Summer

The Hard Rock Cafe expanded into the hotel business a few years ago, and now it’s entered the theme park game. Hard Rock Park just opened about a month ago, so it still has that new park smell, and it’s located near Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, so you can combine it with a beach vacation.

It looks like the Hard Rock could be a good alternative to the Disney parks, especially if princess dresses and mouse-shaped everything give you hives. The park is broken up into different genres - country, American rock, the British Invasion, the 70s - and the rock and roll theme carries over into ride names, food, merchandise, and of course, the entertainment. (I think the Slippery When Wet ride looks like the most fun.)

A Ticket to Ride will cost you $50 for a day, or you can pick up an annual pass for $150. The park is also hiring, so if you want to spend your summer getting some sun and listening to the squeals and screams of little rockers, have a look at their Kickass Jobs section.

Australia: The Movie and the Contest

I finally saw the new Indiana Jones this weekend, and while previews are usually something to have to suffer through, I was excited to see the preview for “Australia”. It’s a big, sweeping period piece, it’s set in one of my favorite places on earth, it’s directed by Baz Luhrmann, and it has Hugh Jackman. That’s a lot of right things to be part of one film.

Check out the trailer to learn more about the movie, and then have a look at the student contest they’re running from now until October. It’s open to high school and college students and there are several different prizes, including a trip for two to Australia on Qantas Airways.

If you can’t wait to win a trip, start planning your own big trip Down Under with student fares from Travel CUTS.

Your Hometown = My Holiday Destination

You probably spend a lot of time thinking about getting away. Wherever you are, you want away from there. If you have snow you want sand, if you have sand you want mountains, and if you have mountains you want cityscapes.

I was cruising around online looking for some destination inspiration of my own. I decided to see where Londoners were reading about and went to the travel section of a UK newspaper. Where were they recommending readers go on holiday? San Francisco. About 20 minutes from my front door. Hmmm. Where else? The small town of Deal, not far from the white cliffs of Dover, home to my friend, Luke, and someplace that I once spent a week’s vacation, mostly listening to Luke talk about how dull Deal was and how he wanted to get away.

Well Luke’s living in Tokyo now, but apparently somebody thinks his hometown is worth a visit. And after reading the article on the beaches outside of San Francisco, I thought that sounded like a pretty good trip as well.

Sometimes you don’t need a new destination, just a new perspective.

Spend Summer as a High School Travel Ambassador

Summer 2008 is almost here. That means it’s a great time to start planning for summer 2009. What’s that? You’re only in high school? So what? Incredible student travel experiences aren’t limited to those over 18.

The People to People Student Ambassador Program, for example, was founded by President Eisenhower in 1956 and has sent thousands of junior high and high school students abroad in the 50 years since then. The focus of the program isn’t just travel, but cultural exchange, and many of their adventures include homestays with local families, meetings with influential politicians and business people, and visits to significant organizations and landmarks.

One difference with this program is that you don’t just sign up and pay the price like you do with a tour company; you have to apply and go through an interview. Don’t let that stop you though. If you have a passion to travel around the world, you’re probably just who they’re looking for. (I’m pretty sure I bumbled my way through my interview many years ago, but I still got to spend some of the best weeks of my life traveling through Australia one summer and Europe the next.)

The Program has drawn some big names over the years (not just me), so you’ll be in good company. According to their website, “Walt Disney created the “It’s a Small World” attraction in 1964 after his participation in the People to People International White House conference. This attraction has now introduced over 250 million people to the concept that we may have our differences, but underneath we all share the same core values.”

Student Ambassadors can travel to Asia, Australia, Europe, or even to Canada (it’s always good to stay friendly with the neighbors) and trips last two to three weeks. Teachers are also needed to lead the student groups, so if you know a teacher who might be interested, let them know about the program too. The fees include all of your meals and transportation, and if you come up with some creative fundraising ideas, you can at least reduce the amount coming out of your pocket.

You’re never too young to get out there and develop a lifelong travel habit. Good luck, and have fun!

Have You Been a Student Travel Cliché?

And if so, does it matter?

In a recent blog, The Backpacker listed what he thought were the ultimate student travel clichés, including a drunken bus tour of Europe and a full moon party in Thailand. But while he thinks some of these cliches should be left behind, others he sees as a right of passage, or worth doing despite the fact that everybody does them.

His list is focused on Autralians abroad, but Americans have their clichés as well: Spring Break in Cancun or Florida, a graduation trip to Disneyland or Disney World, maybe a weekend in Vegas for your 21st. 

But why not do them? If that’s where you want to go, and you have good friends to have good times with, that’s what matters most. Thinking outside the student travel box can’t hurt though, so take some time to explore your more uncommon options.

 

Hello Kitty, Ambassador of Tourism

Japan just named Hello Kitty as their ambassador of tourism in an effort to enourage more women to visit Japan. This article also tells us, “According to her official profile from Sanrio, Hello Kitty lives with her family in London.”

Huh? Shouldn’t living in Japan be a main part of the job? Especially for a fictional character whose fictional bio could have her living anywhere?

Ah, well. If Miss Ambassador visits the U.S., I hope we send both Mickey Mouse and Homer Simpson to welcome her.

The Scholar Ship: The Other Semester at Sea

It was such an awesome idea, of course someone else was going to jump on it. Lucky for you, that means that if spending a few months sailing around the world, learning as you go and visiting exotic ports of call sounds like something you’d enjoy, you have more than one option.

The Scholar Ship is a globally recognized academic program aboard a transformed passenger ship hosting students on semester-long voyages around the world (according to their website.)

The “globally recognized” part must be true though, because they’ve partnered with several colleges and universities, including U.C. Berkeley and Macquarie University in Sydney, to make sure you get the most out of the experience academically as well as culturally. It’s open to both undergrads and graduate students, and financial aid options are available.

If I could travel back in time and redo a semester of my own college experience, this is exactly what I’d want to do, so I hope some of you are able to hop aboard and tell me all about it. Maybe send me a postcard or two to say “Ahoy!”

For more information: http://thescholarship.com/

And to arrange your travel to and from the ship, talk to our friends at Travel CUTS. They can find you a great student deal on flights and can also hook you up with an ISIC so that you’ll save some cash during your time in port. 

Fun Summer Tours Near You: Ice Cream Factories

Right now I’m indoors, at my desk, and it’s 86 degrees. At my desk. Inside. More than anything, I would like to climb inside a refrigerator. The next best thing would be an ice cream factory/wonderland. Here are a few you could check out.

• Ben & Jerry’s in Waterbury, Vermont: This is one of the happiest places on earth, even with the flavor graveyard that reminds me just how much I miss that old timey Rainforest Crunch. The factory is in a beautiful location, very un-industrial, there are fun things to see and do and eat, and as long as you’re in the area you can visit all the cheese and maple syrup farms and shops and boutiques. It’s a foodie’s paradise.

• Blue Bell Ice Cream in Brenham, Texas; Broken Arrow, Oklahoma; and Sylacauga, Alabama: It’s “The Little Creamery” that could. Tour the factory and then sit back and enjoy a fresh scoop or four.

• Mayfield Dairy Farms in Athens, Tennessee and Braseltonm Georgia: This place has been around since 1912 and they produce milk as well, so you can get the whole history of ice cream along with the fancy new flavors. 

• Oberweis Dairy in North Aurora, Illinois: The address for Oberweis Dairy is Ice Cream Drive. Do you need another reason to go?

• Velvet Ice Creams in Utica, Ohio: There’s an Ice Cream Festival coming up here, May 24-26, 2008 and the factory is located in Licking County. This sounds like the best place in the world to bring your tongue!

Any of these places would make a good day trip, or why not find a nearby hostel and make a weekend or full-on road trip out of it? Make your own adventure on whatever budget you can afford and you can make great travel memories without spending a fortune or traveling thousands of miles.