Jacqui L’Ange gets into hot water on her
first visit to Japan – and can’t wait to return to the country’s sublime Onsen
(hot springs) baths.
I’m naked and alone in a changing room at night
and I can’t read any of the signs. They’re in Japanese, so I can’t even decode
the kanji script and guess my way out of here. The four local women who were
here before just disappeared down a long corridor. This is the routine I’m
contemplating now. I can’t see exactly where it goes because it bends at an
angle. And one of its walls is glass.
A
woman enjoying open air onsen in Hokkaido.
Actually, I’m not completely naked – I have
the complimentary white Onsen “modesty towel”, which is about the size of a
large handkerchief. It won’t be much use if I find, halfway down the glass
passage, that I’ve wandered into the men’s baths, or worse, failed to
understand a sign that says “dining hall this way” and end up being unscheduled
entertainment for the hotel guests.
In the few days that I’ve been in this
country I’ve learnt that Japan is a place of exquisite etiquette and minute
attention to detail. It’s easy for a clumsy Westerner to blunder, although most
locals are so politely tolerant of a gaijin oversight that you may not even
know you’ve caused offense.
But it’s pretty obvious that this little
towel will be too small to hide behind if I make a wrong turn.
Hot rocks
who
can resist the shinkansen, the bullet train?
Japan is a volcanic country, which means
plenty of hot springs and a long tradition of Onsen, or hot baths. My partner,
David, and I came to the Minakami-onsen, to escape the bright hustle of Tokyo
and iron out some of the creases from our long flight. (Japan is almost as far
as you can get from Cape Town, and it took us 36 hours of air and transit time
to get here.)
Minakamikan is located in the Gunma
Prefecture, about a 90-minute ride on the Shinkansen “Bullet Train” from the
big metropolis.
The small town feels like part of another
world. It’s autumn, so the air is crisp and the maples have turned every shade
from yellow through burgundy. In the back-yards, bare-leaved persimmons are
heavy with orange fruit. There’s a Shinto temple on every corner.
Our hotel is suspended on the banks of the
Tone River, which courses down the slopes of Mount Tanigawa. The Onsen promises
therapeutic benefits for everything from rheumatism and nervous system
disorders to digestive troubles, scarring and what their brochure calls
“feminine ailments”
Clients can choose from eight different
kinds of baths, made from cypress, crystal, stone or ceramic pearls – the shape
and material of each one subtly changing the energy of the spring waters. Which
are HOT.
I liked the outdoor baths best; there
really is nothing like sinking in up to your chin and watching slightly
sulphurous vapour rise into the chilly night air, keeping still enough so that
the stars and your thoughts reflect off the dark surface.
I just need to walk this gauntlet to get
there…
Hot
spring water flows into the open-air private rock bath
Onsen etiquette
Although Onsen baths are communal, men and
women bathe separately. Minakami-onsen separates its baths into different
areas, and allocates certain times for men and women at each one.
Each has a distinct character – my
favourite: a warm waterfall running down the face of a volcanic rock into a
deep round pool with perfectly sculpted ledges for you to lie on and be
pummeled by invisible water hands.
The clean style and lack of clutter mean
that little details take on special resonance. Each corner provides something –
an origami bird, a perfect stone – to please the eye.
Our 24-hour stay will be just enough time
for David and I to sample every section, separately. We also do one soak
together, in one of the private baths that families or couples can book to
bathe together. Since David is part-Japanese, we do this first so he can ease
me into some Onsen basics.
