As in other countries, Colonel Sanders statues outside branches of KFC in Japan are seen dressed like Santa at Christmas time, a tradition that has been commonplace since the fast food chain’s launch here in the 70s (and the reason why many Japanese people still mistakenly believe westerners eat fried chicken for Christmas dinner!). Unlike KFCs in other countries however, Japanese KFCs also have summer-wear for the Colonel, and it’s commonplace for the statues to be dressed in yukata in July and August (though always removed on September 1st). And last week I discovered this new addition to the Colonel’s wardrobe, a samurai outfit.

Check out these other unusual photos - the vomit bar, the Harajuku oddball, the claw machine with live lobster prizes and the ‘ultra big’ condoms’.

Toilet Design

As with so many aspects of life in Japan, toilets truly evoke the old cliché about the country being a blend of east and west, old and new. At one extreme, public toilets are very often Asian-style squat toilets, simple toilets resembling a hole in the ground that require the uninitiated to engage in a tortuous balancing act to use them. At the other extreme, toilets in people’s homes are often high tech affairs such as ‘washlets’. These are based on western-style toilets but with the addition of a perplexing control panel – press the wrong button and your bare behind will receive an unexpected surprise in the form of a jet of water or a blast of hot air.
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Boy’s Day Carp Flags

Koinobori carp flags used to celebrate the Boy’s Day (also known as Children’s Day) public holiday on May 5th.