Onsen's

The second opportunity I had for public bathing came at one of Japan's most culturally significant activities. The Onsen, or hot spring bath. These were not wilderness pools, but more like spa's built over naturally occurring hot water. The pools were created with several seats and lounge spots, and were divided by temperature. Before anything you took a nice shower, so that you were completely clean before you got in. Then near the shower was usually an indoor bath, in case the outdoor temperature was disagreeable. Outside was a lukewarm pool for beginners, and then a bigger, hotter pool for some serious lounging. You were expected to be completely naked while bathing, so after you showered you would keep only a hand towel or modesty cloth if you were a little shy. Thankfully each gender had their own locker room and bathing pools, so there was no reason to be super shy. The pools usually had a small fee to enter, and being a value minded American I preferred to soak in the pools for as long as possible. Most of the locals though seemed to stay only as long as it was enjoyable, not risking heat exhaustion just for a few hundred yen. After 45 minutes Zabeth and I would usually meet back near the entrance area, sit in front of the fan, and drink a nice sweet tea from the vending machine. I was happy to learn something Cam has known for a long time, there's nothing like a nice bath.