I remember a story told to me some years ago about the introduction of the
railroad to Japan. In the mid 19th-century, when Japan's first rail lines
were laid, they borrowed the classic design of the American Railway
station, the format with two bathrooms aligned on one end.  Just like
American Stations there were two doors leading to the bathroom area, one
labeled "men" and the other "women," but to conform to Japanese customs, no
matter which door you choose enter through, you found yourself in the same
single room.

r.b.