A small, sweet welcome home....

My little Guest Inn (called Guest Inn Kyoto) welcomed me like this every night no matter how late. The only time they didn't have the door open was on the one or two cold (40 degree F) nights. Otherwise, they propped the door open with a small lantern like this. Because you left your key on the front desk when you went out during the day, the innkeepers could tell who was home and who wasn't. Needless to say, this attitude makes Japan a very very safe to live and travel to. This photo was taken at about midnight.

You remove your shoes in the small foyer and either store them in the cubbies provided or carry them to your room.

It's a huge gaffe and a faux pas to walk into a residence in Japan with shoes on. You can see that they provide slippers for the guests to use should they wish.

Note: The yellow dotted tiles outside are for the sight impaired. They run along every sidewalk in every section of every city.