Long-suffering love hotel employees dread spring's crazy couple season
MSN News/ Mainichi Daily News
April 13, 2006

http://mdn.mainichi-msn.co.jp/waiwai/news/20060413p2g00m0dm026000c.html

"The period from the end of March until April is the busiest time of the year for love hotel employees. I suppose the warmer weather makes everybody hornier. And there're lots of different events going on. Students have their graduation ceremonies, companies have parties to welcome new staff and see off leaving employees, so many people come into the love hotels once all that stuff is over. The atmosphere is totally different to normal," Saori Mizutani, a 34-year-old receptionist at a love hotel in Tokyo's Ikebukuro, tells Shukan Jitsuwa. "I suppose people are feeling liberated. For some reason, there are loads of couples who tend to cause trouble at this time. Take the stark naked woman who suddenly appeared in front of a security camera just the other day. I went to tell her off and discovered she'd been bound with her hands behind her back. Apparently, she'd been doing a bit of exhibitionism with her boyfriend."

Spring is also graduation season and holidaying college students use the time to sow their wild oats.

"After some university students have left a room it takes us twice us long to clean up as it normally does. I don't know whether they drink in bed or what, but the sheets are dripping wet, and for some reason the toilets are always blocked," the cleaner at a love hotel in Tokyo's Ueno district says, adding that she regularly deals with the mess caused by all sorts of bodily fluids as well as foul-smelling substances and spew. "I have no idea what they must be doing in here to leave the rooms in such a filthy state."

Some love hotel employees have to deal with somewhat more bizarre requests, like those made when a young man in his 20s brought in a woman who appeared to be his boss and was probably twice his age.

"It kinda looked like the young guy was being dragged in, but he wasn't doing anything to stop it. That piqued my interest and I kept my eye on them. After they'd been in the room for an hour, we got a call from the woman saying that she'd run out of condoms and wanted more. I got another girl to take a couple of condoms up to her. Then, about an hour later, we got another call from the same woman with the same request," Mizutani says, adding that when the second order came through, she decided to deliver the prophylactics herself. "The older woman answered the door with a huge grin on her face. I suppose it must be because I'm the same generation as the woman, but she turned to me and said, 'The young one are the best, eh?' While I gave a polite chuckle, I peeped into the room behind her and saw the handsome young buck spread-eagled on the bed with his wrists and ankles tied to the bedposts. I thought she was a bit cruel, but at the same time, I was a bit jealous of her."

Some love hotel employees say spring often sees the hard word put on them.

"There was this one time when I went to deliver some food a couple had ordered and was greeted by the man, fully naked, and with his mast at full staff. When he noticed that I was embarrassingly staring at him, he turned around and asked me if I wanted to join in with him and his girlfriend," an incredulous Mizutani tells Shukan Jitsuwa. "I could see his fully naked girlfriend behind him. She just stared at me and giggled. Really, gimme a break."