It’s been three weeks since I moved into my
apartment, and it’s quite nice. While it’s only about 7 tatami mats in size, it’s
laid out fairly well and I’m able to have a spacious-feeling area.
My Tiny Apartment from the Interior Doorway - my futon is on the floor in the right corner, folded up. It's a nice, sunny day! |
I can’t measure it directly, but I estimate the main living
space is about 10 feet by 10 feet square. In what is about the size of a small
American bedroom, I have my closet, my TV, a shelving unit, and my futon. There’s
also a small desk-table and folding chair, a cabinet which holds my linens and
also serves as a table and space for my rice cooker, and a rack for hanging
clothes. During the day, I can fold the covers and futon up to open up the
floor to make it easier to walk around. It makes the whole place seem much
bigger.
Near the entrance is the kitchen and bathroom. The bathroom
is really two parts: the shower/tub/sink enclosure and a separate “room” for
the toilet. This means that the toilet doesn’t get wet during shower time and
any unpleasantness the toilet brings stays in its own (ventilated) space.
Outside the toilet is the washing machine (no dryer) – it’s a fairly good
machine as it seems to clean my clothes well, but I certainly miss having a
dryer.
Looking from the interior doorway to the entry door. The bathroom is on the left, and there's a hint of kitchen on the right. |
When I get paid in a couple weeks, the first thing I plan to
purchase is a decent chair. After rearranging a little bit (with only a couple
pieces of furniture in the place, it isn’t a big chore) I found a better arrangement which leaves a good
place to put a chair with a footrest. I’m thinking that eventually I should get
myself a foot massager to use as a foot rest! My feet are quite tired and sore
by the end of the day.
My tiny closet, full of clothes. There are plenty of blankets on the top shelf, and my vacuum is hiding on the lower left. |
There isn’t room for anything else as far as furniture goes.
It might be nice to have a real bed (instead of sleeping on the floor) and I
could fit it in, but I’m sleeping well enough now that I don’t find it to be a
necessity. While I can’t sit on the floor for long periods of time and sitting
in my little folding chair gets uncomfortable fast (thus making a good chair a
necessity), my sleeping abilities aren’t suffering due to using a futon so I’ll
just stay as I am.
The kitchen! Not much counter space and only one burner. There are pots in storage under the burner, and the cabinet over the sink can hold food. |
The fridge is fairly large and the microwave also works as a
toaster oven. I haven’t done any real cooking yet, but I plan on making tacos tomorrow night - I bought everything on the way home tonight. I can
get a pretty good fresh meal for under 500 yen at several restaurants and
convenience store food is even less expensive, so there is little incentive to
cook.
The shower unit bath. No curtain - I shut the door to keep the water in. |
I have only one small problem with the apartment. Due to its
size, humidity from my daily shower (even with the ventilation fan going) and
laundry causes condensation to collect on my window. I am worried about mold or
mildew growing on things, so I have to be sure to air out my apartment as often
as possible. The same goes for my futon, and I do my best to be sure it’s in a
position that any moisture from the night before (from normal sweating) has a
chance to dry.
The private toilet which plugs into the wall. It's heated, and when you flush, water comes out of the faucet at the top to rinse your hands. |
As for the size, I don’t need
a large place. The storage tower I have is big enough that it should be able to
hold all the souvenirs I collect over the next year or more, and I have enough
furniture to be happy when I come home. I don’t plan on spending much time in
my apartment, and even on those days when I do, there isn’t much I can add to it
to make it more pleasant. I do need a
set of instruments for my Xbox, though! Maybe next month…
So that's my apartment! I hope you enjoyed the grand tour!
Ryan,
ReplyDeleteBeen enjoying your posts. Love seeing this little window into your home life there. Looking forward to checking in and reading more. Hope all is well.
- d
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