Arima Onsen

By Julie Chalmers | Friday, Jun 15, 2007

I started the day today with a stone of nervousness in the pit of my stomach because I was about to spend the day naked with 3 of my girlfriends. Steph and I were about to be introduced to an integral aspect of Japanese culture; hot springs. Now I've already been to a public bath in Tokyo with Jane after climbing Mt Fuji and going to Fuji Rock but that was pure necessity. We had spent 3 days in a tent at a muddy concert with nothing more than a freezing river to wash up in, then we climbed the tallest mountain in Japan, we were dirty. There was no one else there and we basically got in, got washed up and got out. The trip to Arima Onsen had no other focus than to spend the day soaking in natural mineral baths and relaxing...naked.
We met Kana and Nami at Kyoto station and hopped on the train for the 2 hour journey. We decided we needed a little liquid courage (sake no chikara!) so Steph and I each drank a chu-hi on the train. I love Japan's liquor laws, you can drink anytime and anywhere, that would never work in Canada. Arima is a small spa town perched on a mountain with really no other purpose for it's existence other than hot springs. Most people do overnight trips, a day in the bath followed by a healthy dinner and delicious night of rest in a comfy hotel room. Having little time and little money we decided to make it a day trip. We headed for the tourist info centre where they reccomended a "super-onsen". Bascially that means that they have as many kinds of baths as you can think up. We handed over the $25 entry fee and our shoes in exchange for kimono-style pyjamas, a couple of towels and a bar-code wristband which would allow us to purchase food, drinks and various services such as massages. We left our clothes in lockers and set off for the bath area in our pyjamas. Still nervous and a bit chilled by the rainy day, we procrastinated getting into the bath by having a bowl of hot udon noodles.

Finally, with no obstacles or procrastination tools left, we headed to the second changeroom. Here, we were to leave the pyjamas and big towel in the locker and head to the bath room with nothing more than the tiny hand towel. Steph and I protested and really wanted to cover up with the big towels but Kana and Nami told us in that case we'd have nothing to dry off with later. Reluctantly, we stripped off the pyjamas and headed to the bath room, our tiny towels strategically placed in front and our backsides exposed. How can a country reputed to be so shy be so comfortable in their nakedness?

Now, there is a strict bath etiquette in Japan and these rules must be followed if you want to be accepted. First, everyone must have a shower before getting in the bath. There's a long mirrored wall lined with shower heads and shelves stocked with body wash, shampoo and conditioner. Seated on small plastic stools, you wash and rinse off then hop in the giant bath. Not far from the shower wall were 3 giant bathtubs, one from the "gold spring" (reddish water) and two from the "silver spring" (whitish water) , one hot, one cold. After about 20 minutes in there I was just too hot so we headed for the outdoor baths. Four naked young women in a row, backsides exposed, we trudged up a narrow flight of wooden stairs, one after the other, careful to look only at our feet and not at the person ahead! Outside, there were a few different ways to relax. Still overheated, I tried out the foot bath, seated on a cold stone bench with a hot waterfall running down my back. Sufficiently cooled down, I hopped into the rock-lined silver bath with the girls. In the same bath were two older Korean ladies who had made interesting, princess Leia-style hats out of their hand towels. Steph started fiddling with her towel to try and copy the same hat when the ladies noticed her and offered to help. Uncomfortably for Steph, the woman stood up right next to her in the thigh-deep water as Steph sat seated to watch the hat-making process. Steph was happy with her hat until she realized "I don't have anything left to cover up my bits when I get out of the water!"
After about an hour in the bath, we changed into a different set of pyjamas and headed into the mixed steam rooms to lie on the hot stone benches. All sweaty, we decided we needed another shower so we started the bath process all over again. This time, we were a little braver and were confident enough to set off on our own in the bath area. After relaxing for a while, I stood up and scanned the row of showers for my gaijin friend. Three old women saw me looking and all pointed towards the saunas. I guess it wasn't hard to figure out who I was looking for. After alternating between the freezing cold water and the sauna we decided to pack up. We finished up the day with some green tea ice cream before heading home.

At first, the idea of spending over 3 hours bathing seemed horribly boring (and a bit scary considering I would be naked in front of 50 women) but I really enjoyed the experience and would definetly do it again. I have never been so relaxed in my entire life and I think I even gained a bit of body confidence.

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I'm a Canadian girl just hanging out in Japan.

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