Introduction to the rising Silence Cafe in Silent cafes attract Japanese Japan

A young woman sits alone in a cafe sipping tea and reading a book.

A young lady sat alone in a cafe, sipping tea while reading.

She pauses briefly to scribble in a nearby notepad before showing her words to a passing Caf é worker: "Where are the toilets please?"

She paused for a moment, scribbled a few words on the notepad next to her and showed it to the passing waiter. "where is the bathroom, please?"

This is a familiar scenario in Tokyo's so-called "silent cafe é s", spaces which appear at first glance to be conventional cafe é s but where customers are not allowed to speak, communicating instead by writing on notepads.

This is a common sight in Tokyo's so-called "silent cafes". At first glance, these cafes are no different from ordinary cafes, but customers entering the cafe are not allowed to talk and can only communicate by writing on a notepad.

A growing number of "silent cafe é s"-with self-imposed chat bans-are opening across the capital, attracting a steady stream of Tokyoites keen to swap the pressure-cooker pace of urban life for solitary silence.

There are more and more "silent cafes" that customers are willing to keep silent, opening all over Tokyo, attracting a steady crowd of Tokyo people who desperately need such a place to escape the high-pressure pace of city life in exchange for a moment of solitude.

Source: daily English newsletter