Better in Japan...

I've decided to keep a running tally of things that are better in Japan than in America, like things that are simple innovations or ways of doing things that make you think, "duh, why didn't we think of that?" I'll try to add them as I come up with them.

#1: At the grocery, instead of unloading your entire cart at the register, which is a bit of a pain, you have a basket that fits into your cart, so you just lift the basket and put it on the counter,

 and the checkout lady takes your food, scans it, and puts it into another basket on the other side, which you then place back in your cart. They give you bags to bag your own groceries, which you do at a handy little counter just beyond the checkout, which keeps the lines moving

 quicker. Also then no stupid kid throws your eggs at the bottom of a bag under a gallon of milk. 

#2: Money. Like the Euro, and countless other currencies, the Yen is way better than the dollar. The bills come in denominations of 1000 ($10), 5000 ($50), and 10,000 ($100), but its the coins that rock. The coins are in denominations of 500 ($5), 100 ($1), 50, 10, 5, and 1 (1 cent). It frustrates me to no end that the American dollar doesn't have a one dollar coin in widespread

 use (almost no one uses the Susan B. Anthony coins).  Coin currency is so useful. Plus, Yen coins and bills (especially the bills) are so much prettier than dollars!