May is my favourite month in Japan. No heating. No air conditioning. The bedroom window stays open all night, and the cool air drifting in before dawn keeps the room at exactly the right temperature. The sun rises before five, the birds begin their morning conference outside the window, and getting out of bed suddenly feels far less offensive than it did in January. By six o’clock, the temperature is already pleasant. Around twenty degrees, with dry air and a light breeze. La

If you’ve ever visited Japan, you’ve probably encountered the country’s legendary high-tech toilets. And if you haven’t, somebody has almost certainly told you about them in the tone normally reserved for spiritual awakenings. 'Heated seats!' 'Automatic lids!' 'It plays waterfall sounds while you do your business!' Western travel articles and blog posts love describing Japanese toilets as 'like operating a Boeing cockpit,' which is unfair. A Boeing cockpit is probably easier.

In recent years, something has caught my attention whenever I visit Switzerland. Increasingly, I’m greeted not in Swiss German, but in standard High German – proper, crisp, newsreader-level High German. In shops. In restaurants. On support lines. Everywhere. For those unfamiliar: Swiss German is a spoken language, and it differs considerably from standard High German, which in Switzerland is mainly reserved for writing – and the evening news. They share the same roots, but th

📢 Public Serenading Switzerland treats public announcements like a medical report: neutral, concise, and 100% emotion-free. The train is late? Delivered in a neutral, matter-of-fact tone, as if reporting the weather. Lost luggage? A swift update, no drama, no sympathy – just facts delivered at Swiss efficiency speed. Meanwhile, Japan has decided that announcements should be full of sensory experience. Train stations bust into cheerful jingles for every arrival. Shopping mall