It’s Onsen o’clock
It’s that time again folks! I’m determined to write a post every week! The only problem being I don’t have much to tell. True to my word, I had my lazy weekend (with a bit of cleaning) and Saturday was gloriously unproductive! I guess Sunday, however, managed to make itself noteworthy.
Firstly, after standing in a Lawsons konbini for an awkward 30min and then a few nail-biting minutes at a Loopi ticket machine, I managed to acquire tickets to the Ghibli Museum next month in Tokyo! Now I know many of you laugh at me for my love of cartoons or in this case anime, (I’m looking at you Dad), but even the most hardened critic has described the museum as magical! I can’t wait!
My other noteworthy activity to achieve maximum relaxation was to visit my first onsen! For those of you who don’t know, an onsen (温泉) is a Japanese hot spring and the bathing facilities and inns frequently situated around them. The first thing you need to know about onsens is – everybody be naked. An odd experience to say the least. Thankfully, most onsens are segregated and once the initial awkwardness of getting undressed was over, I was more or less ok. Granted, we got a few more looks than others but that was more innocent curiosity at three gaijin girls than anything else. One thing you do have to do before getting in is to clean yourself. The baths are not for cleaning the body but for cleansing the soul. As we went to Mitama Hot Springs, the bath afforded a beautiful view of the whole of Kofu at night. I think I’ll definitely be going again!