So a foreigner walks into a beauty shop ...

I love getting my haircut in Japan. The salons offer much more with a haircut than the average place in America. For $45, I think a cup of tea is not too much to ask, but never once does the JC Penny hair salon staff offer me a cup of chestnut tea.

Don’t get me wrong, I went to JC Penny every eight weeks while I lived in Chicago because for $45 I had a competent, friendly, but not overly-chatty stylist who could not only give me a professional haircut, but also remembered where I worked.

A cup of chestnut tea.

But there was no cup of tea. And don’t even get me started on the massage, or lack thereof. But, yes, in Japan, your average run-of-the-mill haircut includes a head and neck massage.

All for roughly the same price as a haircut from JC Penny, depending on the exchange rate. Today 4200 yen is $52, but close enough. I am sure $52 still would not have bought a massage and a cup of tea.

The results - just a trim.