
Police in Hyogo prefecture have recently been cracking down on lodgings which advertise themselves as business hotels or ryokan but which are, in practice, love hotels. The picture above shows a raid this morning in Akashi on a place called "Joy". Of course there's nothing a hotel can do to prevent its guests having sex but the legal definition of a love hotel is quite strict. What gave "Joy" away were the vending machines for sex toys and the touch-panel room booking system in the reception lobby which require a love hotel licence. Police believe there could be as many as 172 other unlicensed love hotels operating in the prefecture and intend to continue the crackdown.
Useless trivia of the day: Bruce Lee's old house in Hong Kong was used as a love hotel after he died. It was announced last week that it will be sold and funds donated to help Sichuan earthquake survivors.