Japan

Japan has a word for it: kodawari. The relentless pursuit of getting something exactly right, whether it is a bowl of ramen, a folded towel, or the angle of light in a room. You feel it everywhere here, in the tea that arrives before you think to ask, the garden that changes with the season, the meal that tastes like someone spent the whole day on it. Once you start noticing, you cannot stop. Every stay here is an education in paying attention to the right things.