It is difficult to be caught short in Tokyo. On a recent stroll through a suburban Tokyo park, I was relieved to come across a magnificent public lavatory. And then another…

My three-year-old grandson is learning to follow the rules at his Japanese kindergarten. Slowly. It has taken him a while to twig that life in Japan comes with strings attached.

We’re told not to judge a book by its cover. But my slapdash gift-wrapping at Christmas raises few expectations.

Surely this ubiquitous bite-sized titbit holds few surprises? But as with most things Japanese, there is more to it than meets the eye.