Clean freaks: Uniformed teams of cleaners in Tokyo, Japan, make the country’s bullet train sparkle with cleanliness in just seven minutes. Eleven teams of 22 cleaners board the train cars between waves of customers and they follow a stringent list of duties, including wiping seat-back trays, changing dirty seat covers and sweeping up trash. The work is timed precisely so that all the jobs get done. Before entering the train, the cleaners line up and take a bow. They also manage to do some fun things to make passengers smile, such as wearing Hawaiian shirts in hot weather.

Sock thief: A thief in the city of Oakville, Ontario (CAN) must have had a lot of holey socks in his/her sock drawer at home. Why else would a person steal a whole collection box full of donated socks from a church foyer? This happened at the Church of the Epiphany in that city. The socks had been donated by the members of the congregation and the plan was to give the socks to needy families. While it was a despicable crime and the police have no leads, the good thing is that the community pulled together to donate more socks to replace the stolen ones.

No staff: In Valley City, a community of about 6,000 people in North Dakota (US) there is coffee shop called The Vault. It’s aptly named because it used to be a bank before owners David and Kimberly Brekke converted it to its current use. The other unique thing about the shop is that there are no staff members on duty to take money from customers. Instead, people come in, choose their coffee and snack, and pay using the honour system. So far, it’s working out fine because the people of Valley City seem to be an honest bunch.

Decorated staircase: A town in Sicily has an outdoor staircase that is considered to be a work of art. Located in Caltagirone, the Staircase of Santa Maria del Monte has 142 steps with risers that are decorated with ceramic tiles of different designs. That alone is something to see, but in the summer, there is an added attraction. The local people decorate the staircase with flower pots and lanterns, resulting in a display of intricate designs. It is fitting for the staircase to be a showcase for pottery because the town is famous for its craftspeople, who work with pottery and ceramics.