You could cook while on the toilet: a night in one of Tokyo’s micro-apartments

Level 2: Intermediate

1
  Warmer

a. What must every living space have? Add any other ideas of your own.

  a bed   a fridge-freezer

  a private sleeping area   an oven

  a wardrobe   a kitchen worktop

  a toilet   a sofa

  a sink   windows

  a shower or bathtub  

  a separate living area  

  a home office

b. Could you live in a micro-apartment (a one-room living space under 32 square metres)? Why?
Why not?

2
  Key words

a. Choose the word that best matches each definition. Then, complete the sample sentences to
use them in context.

boom commute cosy cramped cubicle envision

kitchenette occupancy rental tenant tumble

1. a noun meaning a small, enclosed area in a room, separated from the rest of the room by thin
walls or curtains
Only the director has her own office. The rest of the workers all have a
and little privacy.

2. a noun meaning a small area used as a kitchen

We chose a hotel with a , so we could heat food.

3. an adjective meaning warm, comfortable, and making you feel relaxed

My first flat was tiny but very – I loved it!
D •
TE E E
SI AD L
EB LO B
W N IA

Published by Macmillan Education Ltd. © Macmillan Education Limited, 2023.

M W P
O DO O
FR BE OC

Home >> Adults >> General English >> NEWS LESSONS

T
O
H
AN
•P
C
 You could cook while on the toilet: a night in one of Tokyo’s micro-apartments
Level 2: Intermediate
4. an American English noun meaning the business of buying and selling land and property

He likes working with people, so he is thinking of going into .

5. a noun meaning an amount of money that you pay for renting something such as a house

The average in New York is around $4,000 per month.

6. a noun meaning a sudden increase in the popularity of something

The oil completely reshaped Saudi Arabia.

7. a noun meaning someone who rents a flat, house, office, piece of land, etc., from the person who
owns it
He is a friendly landlord and has a good relationship with all of his .

8. a noun meaning the use, or period of use, of a place

The hotel has 20 rooms, and ten are currently empty, which means that the
rate is 50%.

9. an adjective meaning small and crowded

Today, Mr Hopkins’s group is attending our classes, so it feels very .

10. a verb meaning to fall to the ground

As the horse jumped over the fence, Ophelia from the saddle.

11. a noun meaning the journey to and from work every day
My office is a two-hour from the suburbs.

12. a verb meaning to imagine something that has not happened or does not exist

When she designed her house, she never how much the area
would change.
D •
TE E E
SI AD L
EB LO B
W N IA

Published by Macmillan Education Ltd. © Macmillan Education Limited, 2023.

M W P
O DO O
FR BE OC

Home >> Adults >> General English >> NEWS LESSONS

T
O
H
AN
•P
C
 You could cook while on the toilet: a night in one of Tokyo’s micro-apartments
Level 2: Intermediate
Justin McCurry Cramped but restful
20 March, 2023 8 The Guardian’s stay in one of the firm’s model
flats lasted just 24 hours.
1 Through the open door, every part of the living
space except the sleeping area is visible. A I spent the night alone. My biggest fear – of
tiny entryway leads to a small shower cubicle tumbling out of bed to the floor – never
on the right, next to a toilet that – with the door happened. Actually, the night was more restful
open – you could sit on while making dinner in than in my own apartment, which is almost four
a kitchenette 50cm away on the other side of times bigger.
the “corridor”. 9 Tenants living in Shanti Casa’s 30 units are
2 The Guardian spent the night in Shanti Casa, in spread out over three floors. Each flat comes
Tokyo, the answer to growing demand among with a ground-floor living space, shower and
young people who are unable to afford the toilet, and an upper-floor “bedroom” accessible
capital’s high and rising rents. by a ladder. About 60% of the tenants are male,
and most are in their 20s or 30s, with just one
3 Each micro-apartment measures just nine in 10 over 40.
square metres – just under half the size of a
typical studio apartment in Tokyo – white walls, ‘Saving for somewhere bigger’
a large window at the back and a 3.6-metre- 10 The idea for compact living spaces came to
high ceiling balance out their cosy proportions. Nakama after he moved to Tokyo from rural
The block is among 100 buildings opened in Oita and was shocked to find that a flat cost
Tokyo by the real-estate company Spilytus in more than four times as much in Tokyo.
the past seven years.
11 Exhausted from his long daily commutes,
Gap in the market Nakama envisioned accommodation with just
4 Rents for micro-apartments can be as low as enough space to eat, sleep and store a few
¥50,000 ($376) a month, rising to ¥80,000 in essential belongings, and in locations that
more fashionable locations. At Shanti Casa, the made it possible to walk or cycle to work.
monthly rent is ¥20,000 to ¥30,000 lower than 12 Reina Suzuki, who began living in her
the average rental in the area. micro-apartment in western Tokyo in the
5 Some say the micro-apartment boom shows summer of 2022, was initially surprised by how
the lack of affordable urban housing for young, small it was. “I found it difficult to stretch out
underpaid workers, with quality of life sacrificed and relax. But it’s a 10-minute walk to work, I
for convenience and affordability. But Keisuke like the interior … and I’ve got used to sleeping
Nakama, the firm’s president, says the idea on the upper floor,” said Suzuki.
is to give tenants a chance to save while they 13 With just a single electric hob in her kitchen,
consider their long-term futures. Suzuki, 30, likes to eat out but occasionally
6 “Many younger people these days don’t have makes stir-fries and salads. She plans to move
many possessions. They have a few items of out in a couple of years. “I’m going to save up
clothing and not that much money, so these for somewhere bigger. When I moved in, I felt
apartments are ideal for them,” said Nakama, tired a lot of the time but, over the months, I’ve
whose 1,500 micro-apartments have an got to quite like the place. Surprisingly, I can
occupancy rate of 98%. relax here.”
7 “We want to provide a place for people who are © Guardian News and Media 2023
moving to Tokyo from outside the city and who First published in The Guardian, 20/03/2023
can’t afford the high rents here,” said Nakama,
“Most of them stay in these apartments for two
or three years, save some money and move
to a bigger place, maybe after they’ve met a
partner and want to settle down.”
D •
TE E E
SI AD L
EB LO B
W N IA

Published by Macmillan Education Ltd. © Macmillan Education Limited, 2023.

M W P
O DO O
FR BE OC

Home >> Adults >> General English >> NEWS LESSONS

T
O
H
AN
•P
C
 You could cook while on the toilet: a night in one of Tokyo’s micro-apartments
Level 2: Intermediate

3
  Comprehension check

a. Are these statements True (T) or False (F) according to the article? Correct any that are false

1. Shanti Casa is one of 1,500 buildings in Tokyo opened by Spilytus, a real-estate company.

2. Keisuke Nakama, the firm’s president, got the idea after he moved to Tokyo and was shocked at
the rental prices and tired of long commutes.

3. Micro-apartments are uncomfortable, but they allow people to live close to work while
saving money.

4. Many of the micro-apartments are empty now.

5. Each flat has a living space, shower, toilet, and an upper-floor “bedroom”.

6. The writer feared falling out of the bed on the upper floor.

7. One convenient thing about micro-apartments is that people can flat-share with friends.

8. People who live in micro-apartments are mostly over 30.

9. A flat in Tokyo can cost more than four times as much as in a rural location.

10. One tenant says she can relax in the micro-apartment now but felt tired when she first moved in.

4
  Key language

a. Choose the adjective form that best completes the following statements from the text. Then, go
back to check your answers.

1. It is one of viewings in estate agency history.

a. shorter than b. the shortest c. as short as

2. Rents for micro-apartments can be ¥50,000.

a. lower than b. the lowest c. as low as

3. At Shanti Casa, the monthly rent is ¥20,000 to ¥30,000, which is

the average rental in the area.

a. lower than b. the lowest c. as low as

4. The night was in my own flat, which is almost four times bigger.

a. more restful than b. the most restful c. as restful as

D •
TE E E
SI AD L
EB LO B
W N IA

Published by Macmillan Education Ltd. © Macmillan Education Limited, 2023.

M W P
O DO O
FR BE OC

Home >> Adults >> General English >> NEWS LESSONS

T
O
H
AN
•P
C
 You could cook while on the toilet: a night in one of Tokyo’s micro-apartments
Level 2: Intermediate
5. A flat is in Tokyo.

a. more expensive b. the most expensive c. as expensive as

6. “I’m going to save up for somewhere .”

a. bigger b. the biggest c. as big

b. Complete the questions using comparatives or superlatives. Add two questions of your own.
Then discuss the questions.

1. What is (small, superlative) place you have ever lived?

2. Would it be (good, comparative) to live in a small place by yourself

or share a larger space with others?

3. What is (important, superlative) space in a house for you?

4. ?

5. ?

5
  Discussion

a. Discuss these questions.

• How much of your income would you spend to improve your living situation?

• How important is it for you to save money?

• What would be the hardest thing about living in a micro-apartment?

D •
TE E E
SI AD L
EB LO B
W N IA

Published by Macmillan Education Ltd. © Macmillan Education Limited, 2023.

M W P
O DO O
FR BE OC

Home >> Adults >> General English >> NEWS LESSONS

T
O
H
AN
•P
C
 You could cook while on the toilet: a night in one of Tokyo’s micro-apartments
Level 2: Intermediate

6
  In your own words

a. You are going to design a micro-apartment building for the town or city you live in. You can use
the ones described in the article as inspiration. Design a new one that will appeal to students
or young people where you live.

Look back at the Warmer task to help create your design. Label each area clearly and give as
much detail as possible.

b. Present your design to your group. Compare it to the one described in the article.

Useful language

It has a more … style.

It has a larger / smaller / more…

The … is better because…

The … is more comfortable/convenient because …

D •
TE E E
SI AD L
EB LO B
W N IA

Published by Macmillan Education Ltd. © Macmillan Education Limited, 2023.

M W P
O DO O
FR BE OC

Home >> Adults >> General English >> NEWS LESSONS

T
O
H
AN
•P
C