World’s most passive-aggressive restroom found in Tokyo

10:44 cherishe 0 Comments

Pfft, a ladies’ room is going to need more than 11 signs and an audio warning on a continuous loop to keep me out.

Nestled in Tokyo’s Shinagawa Station lies a ladies’ public restroom that really wants you to know who it is intended for. One Twitter user Chinda (@Chinda0312), who came across the prominently-labelled women’s room, took a photo and posted it on 4 March.

This particular lavatory is adorned with eight salmon-colored signs featuring the international silhouette for “women” and one similar black sign which appears to be the original.

There are also a couple written signs which read, “There is no men’s room here” along with the original “Restroom for women” sign in three different languages.

However, upon returning six days later, Chinda found that the women’s toilet awareness campaign had become even bolder!

Actually the same number of signs are present, but the original black sign was removed from the remodeling and a new protruding salmon-colored sign was added, keeping the total firmly at nine. That being said, the new red wall really brings out the signage even more.

The real kicker however is that according to Chinda, there is also a pre-recorded audio message playing on a loop, telling everyone that “There is no men’s room here.”

This all begs the question: why is this restroom insisting on its intended gender so passionately?

It’s as if some stressed-out building manager received one too many complaints about men wandering into the women’s room and snapped, saying: “Fine! I’ll show them where the ladies’ room is once and for all. I’ll show them all!!!”

Folks online were also largely curious.

“It’s a little much, but I admire their dedication, I guess.”
“I like how they included different sizes and body-types of women. Bravo!”
“I’m sure a guy will still go in.”
“As a man, that almost makes me want to go in more. It’s like it’s daring me to.”
“They should add a few more.”
“Maybe they should’ve designed the bathrooms better in the first place to avoid any confusion.”
“I wonder how many men must’ve gone in there to trigger such a reaction.”

In answer to that last comment’s pondering, it appears that hundreds of men must have gone in there before. According to J-Cast News who interviewed a representative of the station’s owner JR East, there originally was a men’s room there as well, but it was closed by the renovations.

There haven’t been any problems, but thinking ahead, JR realized that men who have used that bathroom for years may walk in out of habit without even checking the signs, especially in emergency situations.

▼ Another tweet shows the sign guiding men to the right restroom.
It also reveals two more women signs, bringing the total up to 11.

Given that it’s more about reaching preoccupied regulars than implying their passengers are thick-headed, this in-your-face approach is actually quite an understandable and considerate precaution on the part of JR East.

And considering that a lot of places opt to use creative but sometimes confusing signs on their restrooms, those who err on the side of caution should be appreciated.

Source: Twitter/@chinda0312, J-Cast News, Hachima Kiko
Featured image: Twitter/@chinda0312



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