Visual Diary 27– Huge Problem with Tiny Cloth

 One cultural difference I can never get over is how people in the West use the same cloth to clean countertops and to wipe their wet hands. I know this sounds petty, but every time I see it, my inner Japanese obāsan dies a little inside. (lol)

If you’re not familiar with why, it’s because in Japan there are distinct terms—and distinct cloths—for different purposes: tefuki for hands, daifuki for the table, fukin for dishes, and zōkin for the floor or ant dusty surfaces. Think about it: the cloth is already dirty after wiping the counter—why would you then use it to dry your freshly washed hands or, worse, your dishes? To me, it feels extremely unhygienic.

This cultural difference even stirred controversy in my marriage. My husband complained that there were too many different names to keep track of. Our solution? We bought a brightly coloured towel used only for drying hands—a visual signal to him not to use it for anything else. Problem solved (mostly).

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