After dropping the kids off at day care in machida, we headed off to beautiful Hakone for my first Onsen experience. An onsen is a traditional bathhouse, these days treated like a public spa more often than not. First, you sit in one of their sit-down shower areas and wash off. Once all the dirt from the road is washed off, it's time to hit the 40C water, piped in straight from a hot springs! Actually, not straight in, apparently the water so hot straight from the spring that it requires time to cool down before it's safe to use. Hakone is a volcanically active area, so there are many hot springs in the area.
Unfortunately, between the rush to and from the Hakone station and the enemies cameras in a bath area tend to create, I did not have time to get any really good pictures of the area. But I will tell you this: Hakone is QUITE beautiful. Lush green foliage everywhere, and yesterday it was cloudy, so the hilltops just above us were kissed by a ring of clouds.
The onsen itself was just what I needed after days of walking and toting luggage. After washing, I hit the pools out in the fresh air. My favorite was a pool with just enough room to sit side-by-side all in a row, and immediately in front of you are trees in the colors of fall, with the lush hillside opposite peeking through the branches. Sitting there in a hot bath was quite relaxing. In demand were the two single-sized bucket tubs with an equally good view. The water was slightly cooler (although still quite warm), piped in from a bamboo tube. Quite soothing.
It helps to be okay with nudity on a visit to the onsen. I am 39 and am well past the shyness of my youth, so it wasn't a problem. But there are no bathing suits here. You do get a personal towel to cover your shame, but half the people there just wear it on their heads. This is largely because it's bad form to actually let your towel fall into the water. One man had fashioned his into a stylish headband, which I thought was a nice touch.
Afterwards, we took the train back to machida to pick up the kids and get dinner. The Machida shopping district/train station is quite bright at night. And the visit to the grocery store was interesting! More or less the same as an american grocery, but a lot more squid and octopus in the seafood section. I picked up a packet of mussels that looked interesting, only to discover they were still alive and moving. I managed to set it back down again without screaming.
Dinner was a nabe pot. Which is hotplate + pot right on the table that you can add broth, mushroom, noodles, tofu, etc to. Quite delicious. Although dinner with a two children under 3 can be QUITE an event.
Today is a rest day, so it's doubtful there will be much more to blog about before leaving tomorrow. Although we may go out to eat tonight, so we'll see. I've got at least one more post in me I'm sure. Japan is great, but traveling takes a lot out of you!
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