Doors in Japan

Man, it is cold. If you need proof, just come visit me sometime... saying "it's cold, isn't it?!" is a more common greeeting than "hello!"these days. It may be only 57 degrees (F) outside right now (pretty high for a girl from the midwest), but it feels a lot colder when you don't have heat inside! Between no insulation, not having heat outside the staff room (and the kerosine heaters only get installed and turned on after December 3rd... no matter how cold it gets!) and the fact that it gets dark at an ungodly hour (well, ok...around 5:30, but they turn off al the lights in the school when the kids leave, so it's really creepy walking down black hallways if you are still around), I don't think I could ever completely adjust to this work setting to a point where I find it normal. Although I do have to admit the brisk air keeps me a little more awake.

Off the topic of freezing fingers, though... I just wanted to share a little tidbit that I learned in class today and thought was kind of interesting. First of all, without looking over at the door, can you tell me which way it opens? Inward, outwards, or sliding (for all of you in Japan)?

I hadn't thought about it much before, but I recently realized that all of the doors in Japan open outward, while the doors in Western countries open inward. The reason is that when Western-style doors were introduced in Japan (old Japanese houses have sliding front doors), they could not have the doors open inward because of the old Japanese custom of taking off your shoes when you enter a building. In Western countries, we open the door outward so you don't have to move out of the way, but this was simply not practical for the Japanese lifestyle. This... inward-opening doors were introduced.
It's not a big deal, but kind of interesting to see how the culture affects everyday life when you wouldn't think about it. Hmm... wonder if the insulation thing is responsible for the heated toilet seats?