Interior of a public toilet on Ariake Promenade in Tokyo's marine district. The artwork is by Matsunaga Hatsuko, a lavatory wall designer, who was closely involved in wall art for aquarium toilets in New York. She says, "My goal is a restroom where users can feel refreshed, a small oasis in the city."

A Japanese-style toilet bowl. Many homes in Japan have a western-style bowl.Public lavatories generally have Japanese-style bowls, because they can be used without the skin touching anything. (Photo credits: Nishimura Tsugio)

Public toilets in the city of Ito have flair. This one looks like a tea-ceremony hut, another like a European building, a third like a log house, and they all fit the surroundings.
Each lavatory is a tourist attraction in its own right. (Photo by Mizuguchi Shingo. Photo credit: Ito Tourist Association.)

A restroom at a beach in Tateyama, Chiba Prefecture, where many swimmers come every summer.
The architect was apparently inspired by a Spanish windmill. (*)

A restroom near Yokohama's Chinatown. It was designed to look like a house in Suzhou, China. The roof tiles and window decorations were made in China.