Onsen for Beginners. Or the case for taking a 3 hour bath with strangers.

Onsen are the Japanese public baths. They are everywhere. There are three in Tenryu. You're never too far away from stepping into a boiling hot tub with dozens of (Japanese) members of the same sex for a good old soak. Whether you believe it upon first hearing or not, that's a good thing.

Baths are a real Japanese tradition (or so I understand). There are the huge public baths that one can find in the cities, like Iida near me, all the way down to slightly less extravagant tubs for one. Traditionally they would be fueled by underground hot springs, but the only real requirement is hot water. Having said that, I have seen -- this weekend in fact -- rusty old metal drums set on cinder blocks that are used as baths as well. Just put a wood fire under the drum filled with water and, voila, you're cooking yourself alive just like a crab. Fantastic.

What often holds foreigners back when visting onsen, are the unspoken rules, occasionally difficult treatment, and overall awkwardness of being surrounded by naked Japanese while being naked yourself.

There are lots of rules at an onsen such as:

1) Don't make eye contact. In a society where eye-contact is frowned upon generally, do you really think it would be encouraged when the person you're staring at is naked?

2) Shower before, after, between, and whenever you can. You may be bathing, but that part is to relax. You get clean before you even step in to the tubs. You sit down at a little shower station and lather up well (make sure the Japanese see you do this so they don't think you're still dirty). You should do this before and after the tub, but you should also rinse between the various tubs. More on those later.

3) No Tattoos. It's a Yakuza (Japanese Mafia) thing. Basically, it's not allowed. I know people who have been turned away at the door for having a little bit of that Popeye tattoo on their shoulder visible from under their t-shirt sleeve. You can get away with it sometimes, but don't expect the red carpet treatment. Expect stares.

4) Don't drop the towel. You carry a small hand towel with you at all times. You use it to scrub down in the shower and wipe off your face in the tubs. But absolutely do not let it fall in the tub water. That's bad.

Sound like a lot of rules? Now try doing it naked while being meticulously scrutinized on your execution of all of them. Admittedly, I felt a little paralyzed my first visit. I was alone and completely clueless. When I touched the water, and the ripples of my entrance reached the Japanese men in the tub, they all became aware of the foreigner and got up to leave. But then I went again with some Japanese men after a hike. They showed me the ropes. Now I go at least once a week and its a breeze. The real pleasure is visiting different onsen to see the different tubs they have, and believe me, there are a variety.

I have done several noteworthy tubs thus far: Beautiful outdoor tubs made of rocks and with little waterfalls like miniature versions of a pool on "Cribs." These are gorgeous (if cold) in the snow, or when the appropriately placed Cherry Blossoms are in bloom; indoor tubs infused with Yuzu, a Japanese citrus fruit; natural pools that reek of sulfur or other minerals; and my new favorite, an electro-shock Onsen that shoots electricity at you from little holes in the seat. No joke. It's supposed to make your muscles relax but I had more fun using those "relaxed" muscles trying to fight the electricity as it made them convulse.

There are others too, like the one near the Monkey Onsen (not THE actual Monkey Onsen I love so much) where the monkeys DO occasionally come down to visit. The town where the Monkey Onsen is located is actually made up entirely of Onsen (It's a hotbed for the underground springs) and Ryokan (Traditional hotels) that occasionally house Onsen. Another Onsen there has apples floating in it. The possibilities are endless. When you visit, there are people just walking around the street in their yukatta (robes) between the various Onsen. And (if you're into that sort of thing) there are co-ed Onsen (men and women are usually in completely separate areas within the buildings) that you can visit to sit and relax with ALL of your friends in one place. From what I hear though, These tend to attract the same types as a nude beach in Europe. Lots of tourists and nearly all men.

The real benefit of the Onsen is that, once the pressure surrounding the rules is gone, it is a great excuse to take an overly long shower. After a long cold hike 3000 meters up, there's not much that can top an hour (or two? three?) at an Onsen. It's a great way to slow down and clear your head after that debacle of a lesson for the 2nd graders. Or, after speaking at half-speed English for a whole week, a great place to meet up with other foreigners and have a legitimate excuse to just talk for a couple hours.

So if you come to Japan, don't be afraid. Embrace the steam and awkwardness. Every day of my existence here is awkward, the locations doesn't really matter. And as for the nakedness, well... Don't be a prude. But also don't expect photos attached to this post.

I didn't travel.

I didn't go anywhere crazy this weekend. This isn't an entry like most of the others. Instead I worked.

Funny statistic: I have monday off after I work a weekend. SO, The number of Mondays I have had off can be taken as a sign of weekends worked. Last week one of the other teachers told me that it was the third Monday we had worked since the Semester had started. Third. That means I have worked three weekends a month since I got here. Wow.

The plus side to this: We went to the elementary school for a lecture where I do a visit every once in a while. The Junior high students were putting their bags away in the first graders' room to store them until after the lecture. I took that opportunity to walk around and see the kids' room since I usually see them in a play room.

In some, maybe most of the 6 or 7 desks, the students had saved the handouts I had given them in class. It was kind of heart warming to know that the kids were enjoying my class and getting something out of it, or at the very least they liked the pictures I drew for them. Regardless, the fact that just a few of them had different sheets as decoration on their desk meant that they weren't forced to by their teacher. Moments like that make me glad I'm in a small village, and I know all my kids... and their parents... and their cousins, brothers, grandparents, postmen, barbers, tofu delivery men...

Kyoto

Yesterday I went to Kyoto. That's 4 hours away. Kashima san, a friend from Urugi likes to drive. He likes to drive English Speakers. Tons of Jets from Nagano know him because they rode with him on trips to places all over, Shizuoka, Kyoto, Tokyo. He's famous among the English Teacher community.

He drove me to Kyoto where I was able to visit a few more shrines and temples. These were definitely some of the most well kept shrines I've seen thus far. Gorgeous. Even stumbled across a little parade festival, not unlike the one I saw last weekend in my own village. What with the "Washoi!" and all.

Next we met up with his friends. 'Met up' might be a little off though. Kashima picked me up after my walk on the Philosopher's Path and they were in the car. I had no idea what was going on and only a vague idea of his relation to the family. We went to see a Kimono Fashion show, then to a great outdoor market on a temple's grounds and last to the area outside the Emperor's Palace in Kyoto. The kids and I climbed trees while the family discussed where we would go for dinner.

The Incredible Growing Hike.

Kyoko asked if I wanted to go hiking. Of course! Kyoko said that we would be gone one night and stay in a cabin. Great, I have trouble sleeping in tents. She also said that it wouldn't be too hard. That's fine, it's been a while since I've done a real hike.

Kyoko called a few days before to correct the following items:
A) It's now two nights.
B) It's going to be very cold. I have complete foul weather gear, gloves, long underwear etc. right?
C) No more cabin. I need a tent.
D) Now we are hiking on ice. I have spikes for my boots right? (Good thing boots had just arrived...)
E) We would be hiking about 8 hours every day.
F) No I shouldn't worry about that Typhoon I heard about. (Silly American)

This was not the casual hike I had thought, but I wasn't going to wuss out. I do like hiking, I just don't like hiking on snow.

Day 1

I meet Kyoko at 6 am and we drive up to meet her hiking friends. We get to Hakuba and get hiking at about 10. We start off at an altitude of
about 1400 m. First day, we climb up to 2700 or so. Most of that is up snow and ice. The other people in the group are all older than me (At least twice my age) but they did a good job handicapping me by getting me to carry the tent and giving me the items they couldn't fit in their own bags. "You're so young!"

When we hit the top it was SO cold because of the wind. I never thought I would be so happy to have my City Year jacket from last year. After that we turned in at abut 6 in the afternoon. 5 of us in a 6 person tent, plus our bags. It was cozy and I was basically snuggling with everyone else and trying to avoid Kyoko sleeping at my feet. Lucky for me we went to be early though, because tomorrow we would wake up at 4 AM.

P.S. If you look close, just to the right of me, that's Mt. Fuji in the distance.

Day 2
I hate 4 AM. After listening to the radio in the morning, we decide to change course because of the typhoon that will hit the next day. (Silly American nothing! I win!) Today we peak the first mountain at about 2900 m. So windy and cold on top I don't even want to take my hands out of my gloves and pockets. And maybe I'm a wuss, but every once in a while I do catch myself taking deeper breaths because the air is a little thin. then we walked along a ridge. We ditched out bags for a "2" hour hike to another peak at 2600 m. Ends up taking three hours. Today we were supposed to hike for 8 hours. At 6, I ask how much further out of curiosity. 2 more our navigator says. 2 hours later, I ask again. 2 more he says. I'm not the only one who's surprised. 2 hours later I ask again. 2 more. No just kidding, only 20 minutes. I couldn't understand the Japanese, but some people were definitely making fun of our navigator by this point. Wait, no his mistake. 1 hr. and 45 min. Just under 12 hours on the trail that day. My feet were killing me by the time we got to camp and set up our tent.

Day 3
We were supposed to sleep late, til 9 or so. But at 5, the typhoon was too strong and our tent was flooded. Time to make breakfast and bail. The way home was really relaxing. We stopped to take an onsen (hot spring). It was a lot better than my first visit where the Japanese people just avoided me and even went so far as to leave tubs when the ripples from where I stepped in hit them. Being with other Japanese in the tubs seemed to somehow legitimize my presence. Travelling with older women is great too. We stopped for cake and tea twice. I love cake.

This was the first time I've ever really gone hiking to peak mountains. It was great. The group is training to climb Fuji. I've already told them I want to go to. We might give it a go next summer.

Link to more photos:
Mountain Climb October

Tokyo + Surfers + Dancing

This past weekend I went back to Tokyo. My first visit was right off the plane, and it was less than ideal. Jetlagged, too many lectures, generally worn down. This time was much more entertaining. The one trick was the lack of a hotel Saturday night...

All of Tokyo and its neighbors like Yokohama were completely booked up as far as 2 hours out of the city. So when we went to Kamakura, where one friend's father was born and grandparents used to live and the site of a great (but dirty at the time courtesy of a typhoon) beach, we sort of expected to find something. We didn't. What we did find were some surfers who spoke English and were willing to help. Unfortunately, nope. No hotels in Kamakura that were within our price range. We thanked them for their help and went to have a drink to think. We decided to have another drink on the beach to think. Well, it helps me think. But granted we really weren't that worried.

On the way out to the beach, we ran into the surfers again. They were having a barbecue and invited us to join. Within 5 mintues of talking with them, one girl invited us to stay at her house. We played the polite game refusing a few times, but there was a lot of sideways glances like, "Let's totally do this." So we partied with the surfers all night. Stayed up late talking to the girl who let us crash at her house with her and her boyfriend, and then tucked in for bed. Japanese style. With me all but snuggling with the girl and her boyfriend... A tad awkward in my estimation but it was still a great night.

Sunday during the day we visited the shrines in Kamakura, including the Daibutsu, A giant statue of Buddha. Lots of fun. I don't care how many of these shrines I visit, each one is different and has something new. Not unlike the mummified remains of Saints on display in Spain.

That night was a huge party at a club in Tokyo. We danced til the sun came up by the outdoor poolside DJ. This trip was much more fun that the last visit. This doesn't really seem to capture how much fun it was... oh well.

Link to more photos:
Tokyo and Kamakura Photos

Nagano Round 2

So I was able to get back to Nagano recently to meet up with some folks. Not much planned for the trip, but a lot happened. It was good fun. A little karaoke, some monkeys, some ski jumping in the middle of the summer. Fantastic.

Note to anyone that wants to go see the monkeys at the onsen outside of Nagano city, go at the end of the day, near the 5 o'clock closing time. That's when they feed them. And its crazy.

The next day we went to go see ski jumping in Hakuba where they held the event during the winter games. Apparently there is also luge here later on and they let people try it... I know I'm interested. We made some friends with some folks at the ski jumping. They were fans from the area supporting a Japanese ski jumper. He came in sixth, but the way they were partying you would have thought otherwise. I've got to say its rare that I have a beer before 11 now that I'm out of college, but these people were throwing down at 10 in the morning.

Sports Festivals

In Japan, they like sports. They like physical education. In recent years, the Japanese government has been pushing to extend class time in the most 'important' subjects, such as Japanese, Math, Science, and Physical Education. English sure isn't listed there. At any rate, the Sports Festival is like Field Day in America, except in the villages I work in, most of the village comes out to watch and support their children. Everyone from the Nursery school to the elderly have events, although the stars of the show are the kids in the elementary and middle schools.


There are all sorts of events ranging from classic runs and relays to the tug of war. My favorite event though, was a combination of steal the bacon and tug of war. The video below should give you a good idea, but basically 7 large bamboo poles are lined up in the middle of the field. The gun sounds, and two teams rush the middle in an attempt to pull as many poles as possible over to their side of the field. Pole = point. Pretty simple. Except that when you get to that last pole, It becomes a real fight. Here are some photos from the day, and a video of the "Bamboo Pull" (Rough translation).

By the way, White won.

The photo below is a link to the album of a few more photos from the day. I was really sunburned, but it was a great time. As was the barbecue enkei (drinking party) afterwards.

Sports Day