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Published: March 23rd 2008
a picture of ureshinokan rotenburo
taken from the website as photo-taking is obviously not allowed with naked people about!yes, that's right!
on thursday, laura and i set off for ureshino - a famous onsen and hot spring town not too far from saga. we were really dreading it to be honest and found it amusing that stripping off naked and sitting in a hot bath with strangers is considered to be relaxing amongst the japanese! we felt anything but relaxed!
after chatting to some ladies in the information centre, we decided that we would visit a 'rotenburo' - an outdoor bath. because the temperature of the baths can be as high as 90 degrees, i wanted to try somewhere outside so that there would be a breeze to cool us down a little! the roteburo only cost 800 yen which is about 3 pounds... can you imagine a beautiful outdoor spa in england costing as little as that?!
so after checking in at the front desk, we got handed a towel... far too small to actually cover anything though - we were tempted to ask for a few more! we walked into the ladies changing room and got stares straight away! so we whipped our clothes off, trying to look as comfortable as possible and also trying very hard not to snigger! we walked into the shower room and had to sit on a little stool to wash ourselves before soaking in the bath. after just a few seconds in the water, i totally realised what the japanese love about onsens! there were mothers and children bathing together, friends chatting... it was so relaxing just to sit outside and soak in the water that laura and i both quickly got over the fact that we were naked!
we eventually stayed for about an hour... alternating between sitting on the rocks when it got too hot, and sinking into the water when there was a cold breeze. the water in these hot springs is said to be extremely theraputic - the minerals made our skin silky smooth... i'll definitely be jumping into a few more before i leave japan!
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helen
non-member comment
hi mate just caught up my internet has been playing up. Can't believe you got naked never thought you would. Must have been very sad when you left but all the food and drink must of made you feel better. I thought you were coming home when you finished working, so when do you come back and have you thought about what you are going to do next? Enjoy your exploring speak soon. love hel xx