July 9, 2021
Yesterday we “rode” the Orient Express to Istanbul, and took a look at the 3 day trip from Venice to London. If you have 20 minutes now (or if not, save this link for later – the video is very well done), watch Stephen and Jessica Parry-Valentine show you the train and the experience. If you are wondering, their compartment, a twin cabin, is $3100 for the journey.
👉 Today’s luxury train journey is on the “Seven Stars” on the island of Kyushu, Japan. The island is known for its stunning volcanic landscape dotted with national parks and hot springs. The “Seven Stars” travels through the landscape with stops that include a traditional pottery experience and a beautiful lakeside, and an overnight stay in a traditional Ryokan (Japanese inn), depending on whether you choose a 2-day, 1-night or 4-day, 3-night itinerary.
This train is custom-built as the world’s most luxurious sleeper train, the seven carriages gleam with wooden parquet flooring, wood paneling interspersed with intricate artisan fretwork, all dotted with the shiny brass logo of the company, and, yes, the en-suite bathrooms feature not only hand-made porcelain basins and separate showers, but also a so-called singing Japanese toilet.
There are two Deluxe Suites on the train and they take up one entire car.
There are 12 “regular” suites divided between 4 cars.
All guests must be over 12 years old. The “Seven Stars” does not allow smoking anywhere on board, and the suites do not have television sets because “we would like guests to enjoy the views from the windows, and mingle amongst passengers.” Each room has a full bathroom with toilet and shower. Appropriate attire on board is smart casual for daily wear and semi-formal for evening wear. Sports wear, pre-ripped jeans, and sandals are forbidden (you may wear sandals if you are wearing a kimono). T-shirts, shorts, and sneakers are only appropriate for during the excursions.
The Deluxe Suite A is $8400 per person, double occupancy. Off-season rates in the regular suite is $3300 per person, double occupancy.
Here is a 2.5 minute video produced by “Seven Stars.”
👉 As mentioned above, there are singing toilets on board the “Seven Stars.” An article I found from March 2018 titled, “$11,000 luxury Japanese toilet will probably give you the best poop experience of your life,” said they would be available in the U.S. that fall. A quick google found one offered by homeperfect.com for $13,870.00.
When you hear “Japanese toilet,” you may think of the pit-style “squatty potty,” – put your feet on the marks, hold the handle and squat – but this is not your father’s potty. This porcelain throne – the Toto Neorest NX – is designed with a number of executive features to maintain maximum cleanliness, hygiene, comfort, and even “hospitality.” Hospitality means you don’t have to do a thing but what you came to do. It opens the lid when you walk up, warms up the seat, deodorizes any smelly transactions, auto flushes when you’re done, and then politely closes the lid after you leave. It has a bidet and an air dryer, so you don’t even have to bother with toilet paper. All you have to do is sit.
And now, if anyone asks, you can say, “Yes, QB has gone to pot!”
👉 How is your knowledge of 1960s TV shows, specifically, their theme songs? This video plays, if I counted correctly, has 15 second clips from 40 shows. I missed 11 for a score of 73% or a C on a 10 point grading scale. If you watched their first broadcasts or have caught reruns on many cable stations, I’ll bet my score does not hold up. Click here and give it a try.
👉 Some signs for the times before we close:
👉 Today’s close is from New Morning Mercies, by Paul David Tripp.
It’s natural; we all do it. We all wonder about what is to come. Some of us think about the future and hope our dreams will come true. Some of us dread the future and pray that we will not have to face the things that we fear. For some of us, the future seems foggy and unknowable. For all of us, it’s hard to look into the future and be secure, because the future is simply out of our hands.
With all of our consideration, meditation, and planning for what is to come, things never turn out the way we envisioned. There are always unexpected turns in the road. There are potholes and ditches we did not anticipate. There are mountains and valleys we just did not foresee. We find ourselves walking through moments of darkness when we thought we’d be living and walking in the light.
It doesn’t take long for us to begin to acquiesce to the fact that we don’t ever quite know what is around the next corner.
But we don’t have to live plagued by the anxiety of the unknown. We don’t have to go to sleep wondering what the next day will bring or wake up working our way through all the “what-ifs” we can think of. We don’t have to seek some means to figure out what we will never be able to figure out.
No, we can have rest when we are confused. We can experience peace in the face of the unknown. We can feel an inner well-being while living in the middle of mystery. Why? Because our peace of heart does not rest on how much we know, how much we have figured out, or how accurately we have been able to predict the future. No, our rest is in the person who holds our individual futures in his wise and gracious hands.
We have peace because we know that he will complete the good things that he in grace has initiated in our lives. He is faithful, so he never leaves the work of his hands. He is gracious, so he gives us what we need, not what we deserve. He is wise, so what he does is always best. He is sovereign, so he rules all the situations and locations where we live. He is powerful, so he can do what he pleases, when he pleases.
Paul says it well in Philippians 1:6: “And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.” Are you experiencing anxiety because you’ve forgotten who you are and what you’ve been given? Are you experiencing the fear that results from trying to know what you’ll never know? He knows, he cares, and he will complete the job he’s begun.
You don’t have to be anxious about the future. A God of grace has invaded your life, and he always completes what he starts.
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