van Marley

Coffee Laboratory
Since I never bothered to look at the time difference here, I seem to have gotten over the jet lag rather quickly. Actually, because of the 24/7 Tokyo craziness, I don’t think I ever experience jet lag since I just stayed up late and got up early, not wanting to miss out on anything. Now, I’m dead tired at 10h00 and tend to wake up around 7h00. This is quite a nice change from my LA ritual of working until 3-7h00 a.m. , then getting up at 10-11h00.

I started the morning off by going to a local kisatten (cafe) and enjoying several thimble-sized cups of coffee while overlooking a river. The cafe owner, like many people here, spoke a little English so we spent the better part of 2 hours trying to have a conversation. They don’t use espresso machines or French Presses here, rather, it looks more like a mad scientist’s laboratory. See accompanying photo.

A Trip to the Sea
Later that day we had lunch again at To-chan’s restaurant. This time a pork cutlet curry dish with enough sides to feed 11 people, and all for only $5. Not everything in Japan is expensive. Towards the end of the meal, Jason’s coworkers invited us to join them on a 2 hour drive out to the coast to scout out a camping area for an upcoming trip for the students at the school. The tricky thing about driving in Japan is not really driving on the opposite side of the road, you actually pick that up pretty quickly, it’s learning how to navigate these narrow roads. There really is no speeding since most of the cars are powered by lawn mower engines. At times, especially on the more remote mountain roads, you’re really driving on a glorified side walk barely wider than your already miniature sized car.

After a hike down into some caves, and then a stroll along the rocky sea shore, we headed back into Shimizu-Cho.

How to Have a Private Onsen, or, How to send 15 naked Japanese men running for the changing room.
Somehow despite expending no energy whatsoever during the day — other than the walk to lunch — we were exhausted when we got back. In Japan, there’s no better way to soothe a tired body than a nice hot soak in the onsen. For those of you who don’t know, Japans volcanic foundation results in numerous natural hot springs or onsen. In a country steeped in rituals and traditions, the onsen come with perhaps the most important and complex I’ve encountered to date.

So, if you are thinking about coming to Japan, print out this list of handy onsen tips and spare yourselves the humiliation.

Shoes
It’s no surprise you have to take your shoes off when entering a home, but in stores and restaurants, this is usually not the case. A good guide is anytime you enter a store and there is a single step up onto the main floor, take your shoes off there.

Towels
The towel you buy after you forget to bring you own is for washing up, not drying off. Make sure to suds up and scrub every inch possible of your body and then some. And no matter what, don’t leave any soap residue on your body.

Change Room
Pretty self explanatory. You go here first, strip down, and then carry the small hand towel in front of your private parts. I assume this is to show modesty before you jump in the tub with a bunch of naked dudes you’ve never met before. (And they used to be mixed until MacArthur laid down the law post WWII)

Bathing Room
Ah, here comes the complex part. Sit yourself down on one of the stools. They pretty much look like milking stools for those of you with farm experience. There’s a shower nozzle, two kinds of soap and a wash basin. One is shampoo, the other is body soap. I couldn’t read which was which, so to be safe I just washed everything with both. Make sure you scrub every single part of your body imaginable. If you’re confused, follow the 20-2-2 rule. Based on observation, you scrub the skin off your body for 20 minutes, then dip in the hot tub for 2 minutes, jump into the sauna for 2 more minutes, then go home.

It’s well known nearly all Japanese men (and women) have no body hair. Most assume it’s genetic, but I think there’s a more plausible explanation. From a young age, onsen is a regular activity. In the washing process, the men scrub their hair follicles straight out of their arms - sort of like a gentle epilady. Do this over a lifetime and of course you’ll never have to deal with annoying body hair. Mystery solved.

We just copied the guy next to us and thought we had washed sufficiently (a solid 15 minutes), but as soon as we entered the hot tub, the previous occupants immediately decided to evacuate it like a shark alert had been sounded. Turns out, the guy next to us was leaving, and just washing up one last time before going home. Who knew?

Each onsen has it’s own mix of minerals and magical properties. This one was supposed to help digestion. I haven’t had diarrhea today so it’s possible, but I can assure you it makes your skin baby soft.

We wrapped up the night by making dinner at home, which at best could be described as edible. Today is another relaxing day with a bike ride in the afternoon followed up with a night of ramen and drinking at a local restaurant with some of Jason’s coworkers.

Next up, Wakayama, Hiroshima, Osaka, Kyoto and finally Tokyo. Stay tuned…