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As the weather gets hotter, the girls’ skirts get shorter. Although, to be fair, there are plenty of girls in Japan who strut around in tiny skirts even in the freezing depths of winter. But be it in winter or summer, one thing that comes with mini skirts is the risk of panty shots.

There are shorts designed to be worn under skirts to prevent such situations, but some girls don’t want to wear them, instead running the risk of giving the random guy an eyeful of their undies when they’re climbing up the stairs, running after a bus, or just standing in the way of the wind.

Apparently, such accidental upskirt situations are so common that it provides enough inspiration and case studies for an illustrator to start drawing a series of sketches on Twitter.

Many train stations in Japan have posters pasted along or near stairways and escalators, reminding females to be alert for people who attempt to sneak upskirt shots with their mobile phones while making their way up. It is a crime to secretly photograph someone else’s panties, but there are no laws against accidentally catching a glimpse, and honestly, there’s nothing one can do to prevent the unintended glance up a girl’s skirt when she happens to be strategically positioned right in one’s line of sight.

In Japanese, there’s a term coined for such glimpses of upskirt glory – panchira. “Pan” is short for “panty”, and “chira” describes a quick glance. Japanese Twitter user @kioku_panties sketches the everyday panchira episodes that he has come across and imprinted in his memory. Ladies who have a preference for mini skirts, if you want to know what the risky angles are you should look out for, this could be a useful reference.

▼ A sporty-looking girl in a polo tee and grey checkered skirt going up the stairs. She was wearing white undies with blue line-like prints.

▼ A high school student with fluttering lashes wearing a navy blue cardigan and checkered skirt. Her white undies were in plain sight as she hustled up the right side of the escalator.

▼ Another lady hurrying up the escalator. She seemed to be wearing a pair of skorts, but her white undies could be seen anyway.

▼ Take note when going down the escalator too. Sometimes the wind can be merciless.

▼ Going up the stairs and waiting in line for a bus. Her tiny skirt danced and flipped about when she walked, offering glimpses of her knickers.

▼ Even the artist himself was slightly puzzled. Since when did high school students stop wearing safety shorts under their skirts?

▼ Riding on the bus. The young lady failed to notice that her panties could be seen because the back of the seats have reflective surfaces.

▼ Here’s another place where you should sit properly: cafe seats situated right in front of the window. Yes, you can get a view, but so can the pedestrians.

▼ Double panchira on a Sunday. The girl on the left was wearing black under-shorts but the sides of her pink panties were sticking out under those. The girl on the right had a close call. The wind didn’t manage to tousle her tucked-in shirt so her panties weren’t in full view.

▼ A strong gust of wind flipped up the culottes of the girl, who had her hands filled with shopping bags. Her boyfriend lent a guarding hand while feeling up his girlfriend’s butt.

▼ Stopping in the middle of the road and bending over at the waist to fix your sandal straps isn’t the best idea, ladies.

▼ Tying your shoe laces at the top of the stairs isn’t quite a smart move either.

▼ Starbucks panchira. Who knew leaning over the counter to look at the menu or make orders could result in a panchira moment?

▼ That moment when you shift your backpack to the front and your skirt dances free.

▼ Strong, sudden blasts of winds. Mother Nature’s way of pranking city dwellers since forever.

What have we learnt today? Culottes and skorts don’t give as much coverage as shorts, even if they seem to be “safer” than skirts. Safety shorts only save you from panty flashes if you wear them properly, and they don’t work if your shorts are tinier than your panties. People are looking even if you think no one saw!

Source/Top image: Twitter (@kioku_panties)