Golden Week Thursday - Arima Onsen

On the Thursday of Golden Week I finally got around to going to an onsen for the first time. Onsens are very popular in Japan, and are basically public hot springs where you soak (or stew) in very very hot water from deep underground. There are also public baths in Japan which don't necessarily use spring water.

Anyways, Arima is one of the oldest (if not THE oldest, it may say on wikipedia) hot spring resorts in Japan. It's quite expensive to go to, but there are various different springs you can visit. Some of them are for one off visits whereas others are full day affairs, with food and all kinds of extras. The one I went to with my friend was called Kin no yu - 金の湯. This means Golden Hot Spring. Yey.

So with towels in hand and exhaustion to dissolve, we took the bus from Takarazuka for about an hour. We stepped off the bus to find a performing monkey surrounded by a crowd in the street. As you do.

It didn't take us very long to find the place as outside there was a free foot spa bath where people dipped their feet into the hot water. We made our way into the establishment and had to take off our shoes before paying at the desk and receiving our locker key. The bathroom, as is standard in Japan, had toilet slippers. Within three minutes of arriving Kelly had already committed the sacred error of walking out the bathroom with them still on her feet. Shame on her!

I hope you're ready to hear the next part. We got up to the changing room and were greeted by many naked ladies, the majority of whom were over 50 (a not inconsiderable number were at least 105 years old). No one batted an eyelid at each other as everyone moved around in the pretty confined space. This is because you are naked for the entire Onsen experience.

Yeah that's right. No swimming costumes, no pants, no towels to cover your modesty. Now, bearing in mind that us gaijin girls get stared at when buying a loaf of bread, I was feeling pretty sick at the idea of stripping to my birthday suit in front of a big group of curious females (thank goodness for gender separation). As it turns out, it's like ripping off a plaster. We scurried naked into the Onsen room itself, a room full of steam and.. well, nakedness. Yes, I realise I'm dwelling on this a bit, I'm just a self-conscious person (though I'm over the shock now and would willingly go again, what a liberation!)

Before getting into the hot tub itself you have to wash first at any one of the showers that surround it. The idea is to be absolutely clean before you get in, it's only polite after all. There were three hot tubs in total, at either 42 or 44 degrees depending on which one you chose. The water was a rusty, golden colour, living up to it's name. I'm not sure what minerals exactly were supposed to make up it's formula, but I did feel like I was slowly being cooked in an earthy broth. The water was so hot! We didn't stay for too long (and you're not supposed to for obvious reasons), but the older ladies were taking it in their stride whilst I floundered at the side of the pool. Kelly, who has preivously sampled the Onsen experience, gave me the best advice I have ever received - don't stand up too quickly. As it was I thought I would pass out, when I actually stood up again I realised just how easy it would have been to keel over.

It was an interesting experience, however. We showered again afterwards but that was necessary due to the extreme earthiness of the spring. In general you're not supposed to as it is considered a bit insulting. The idea is that everyone is clean when they get into the tub so why would you wash more? I know of a few people who would probably pee in the water intentionally though, thank goodness I wasn't in the water with boys.

After that we dried off and got dressed and went for a very cold drink. I felt like I had been flattened from a vigorous massage! I went to the bathroom and took a step out with the slippers still on (by accident of course.) Shame on me! The woman waiting for them after me nearly had a heart attack. Sigh.

Soft and boiled through, we went for a wander around the village, sampling such delights as manjuu and ice cream, sipping on soda water that has been carbonated by the underground springs. Here are some photos:

One of the points where water is pumped from the ground and into the baths.

Hot water bubbling in one of the parks we found. There was also a fountain with carbonated mineral water that you could drink from.

A hidden treasure.

The area is lush and green and full of little shops like in beach resorts. The weather really picked up too, so it was an amazing day. Just what I needed!

Golden Week Wednesday - Kyoto

My all time favourite place in Japan is Kyoto. Despite having visited the city three times already, I decided on Wednesday that I would jump on the train there for the fourth time. A couple of days really aren't enough to see the best parts of Kyoto; a week might be sufficient. About a month ago one of my best friends left JET for health reasons, and whilst I was distracted initially by my boyfriend's second visit to Japan, I've since been moping a bit and not really seeing very much. Most other people I knew were busy on the Wednesday but I was determined not to stay at home, especially when the weather has been picking up recently. So off I went, map in hand and ipod fully charged.

The station of Kyoto is massive. The scale of it is impossible to describe here. It's so big that they have weddings and performances in it, as well as a department store and a ramen village (noodle village). Last time I was there, my boyfriend wanted to do the sky walk (walk through a tunnel attached to the ceiling from which you can see the city). I have a bit of a thing about heights, however, and only managed it halfway up. He took me back down to the ground floor and left me with donuts before going back to do it alone. Sorry about that :S

On the Wednesday, by myself with no one to notice if I failed in my task, I decided to do the skywalk. Why? Because I'm a bit of a moron in my own right, and stubborn with it. I walked through the ticket barriers into the centre of the station and made the split second decision to do it. Before I could think too hard, I stepped on the escalator. Then the next one, then the next one. Before I knew it, I was at the final escalator. It was long and thin and very exposed to the wind, making it seem all the more precarious. The only way I made it up was by staring at my feet the whole time. Stepping off it into the tunnel, my feet felt like lead and my legs felt like jelly. That feeling did not disappear the whole time I was up there.

But I did it! And I took some pictures.

This is the Kyoto Tower as seen from the skywalk.

This is the inside of the station as seen from the very top floor (called the 'Happy Terrace'!). It is very high up for someone as small and scared as me, click on the photo to see a higher res version.

So, with that experience under my belt, I slowly made my way downstairs (still feeling slightly sick) and jumped on a bus to my real destination: 金閣寺 - Kinkakuji temple.

No long description is really needed here, just take a look at the photo:

金閣寺 is a temple coated in pure gold leaf. It's a national heritage sight, and it is absolutely breathtaking. It seems to float on an island in the water, and the gold reflection shimmers. There are random little rock islands in the water where trees are growing, and despite the huge crowds it still radiated tranquility. I stood for a very long time staring at it.

Beyond the temple, there was a bit of a walk you could follow. Everywhere seemed to be surrounded by green.


There were large koi carp swimming in the water...



and there were small cascades of water by the path...


which led to a smaller shrine where prayers can be said:


There were stalls selling souvenirs and food (including Kyoto's famous 'dango' which I was given free samples of), at the end of which you could find an even smaller shrine with foxes in (foxes are the guardians of the larger Fushimi Inari shrine, more about that in a different post):


This more or less sums up my trip to Kinkakuji! So, one last photo for good measure, a vending machine I found close to the exit of the temple, just in case you had forgotten your camera and wanted to run back and take pictures before leaving.

Golden Week Tuesday - Boar'd after the zoo

So, on Tuesday I set off with a couple of kiwi friends to visit 王子動物園 - Oji zoo in Kobe. I'm quite an excitable person, so I had been looking forward to the outing ever since I discovered there was a zoo so close to home. It was an experience of highs and lows, however. I adore Japan and have the utmost respect for its customs, but there seems to be some work to be done in the way of animal rights.

There was a petting corner, where kids could stroke rabbits. I understand that kids rarely get the chance to have pets out here, given the limitations that are imposed on people who live in apartments, but some of the rabbits seemed terrified.

The sea lions were living in tanks that were less than pristine. There was a plastic bag and a drinks carton floating on the water and the bottom of the tank had a fair amount of mould growing on it. The polar bear was a bit of a sorry sight too, it was pacing up and down in exactly the same pattern for the whole twenty minutes that we were watching it.

That said, most of the animals seemed to be looked after well. My favourite was the red panda.


Click on the photo to see a higher resolution. It's adorable!! There was a giant panda too, for good measure. Not in the same enclosure though, obviously.



I also got a particular kick out of seeing the bats. I love bats.

After the zoo, we headed into Kobe to get lunch at Saizeriya (pizza for 400 yen!) and pondered on what to do next. In our infinite wisdom, we decided to head for the hidden waterfalls near to the Shin-Kobe station just as the sun was setting. We only had a vague idea of where they were and no decent map to guide us.. but maps are for chumps, right? So we set off on the mountain trail as it got darker, snaking our way up secluded streets and watching houses and civilisation disappear.

Before long it was dark. The road narrowed, the (few) street lamps flickered ominously, and reception on our mobile phones dwindled and died. The barriers that separated the narrow road from a sheer drop down the side of the cliff were mere metal poles held in place by wire, themselves leaning over the edge where the wire was sagging. I protested slightly about the importance of continuing this expedition, given that we would probably not even see the waterfalls by this point, but the boys insisted we continue. So we did, until ten minutes later we reached a locked gate that prevented us going any further. Fail. We took a couple of goofy pictures before using our mobile phones as torches to find our way back down the path.

It certainly seemed to be a lot steeper on the way down. It was pitch black too, which was a little disconcerting as by this point the barrier had disappeared completely. We jumped into a patch of mulch to narrowly avoid being mown down by someone driving a car a little too fast up the road, before checking our feet to make sure no unsavoury creature had attached itself to our legs. Then, startled by a rabbit(?) darting across our path, we made haste and eventually turned a corner back onto a road with houses and street lamps.

Which is where we came face to face with a wild boar. Pretty intense end to an otherwise relaxing day.

Back after a break

I haven't known how to pick up again with my blog after the last entry. Japan is going to be recovering for a long time after all that has happened and I was so angry with the media that I didn't want to write long rants in my posts. But I've been prompted by friends to pick up from where I left off with my adventures so I'm going to make a start by telling you all about Golden Week. It'll take a few posts I guess but it'll break things down - everyone hates a long-winded read after all, right?

Anyway, for those back home who have never heard of Golden Week, a brief explanation. At the end of April and start of May there is a cluster of public holidays. There are four in total and if you take two strategically placed days of paid leave from work then you can actually end up with ten days straight of time off. I didn't take any paid leave but there were still three consecutive public holidays the past week so I decided to make the most of them (despite a tight budget). So what follows is a bit of a run down for you on what I got up to.

Why I'm staying in Japan until the end of my contract

It’s probably a surprise that I haven’t yet updated my blog after the events of the 11th March. The Japanese newspapers refer to it as 東日本大震災 - The East Japan Great Earthquake Disaster (or a loose translation thereabouts, I'm still honing my skills). The images that we’ve all seen have been beyond anything I can comprehend, and the sheer destruction that resulted from the tsunami has wiped out lives, livelihoods, reduced homes to nothing, torn families apart. The media of course only focused very briefly on the earthquake and tsunami victims, but very quickly moved on to the unfolding events at Fukushima. Scare-mongerers in the English-speaking media were quick to throw out words like ‘Chernobyl’ and ‘government censorship’ and ‘contamination’, sparking panic amongst the ex-pats in Japan and around the world. Well, didn’t we sell a lot of newspapers? Are we all proud, journalists? Now that the situation has somewhat calmed at Fukushima, can we now concentrate on the huge humanitarian crisis in Tohoku?

Many people back home got in touch as soon as they heard about the earthquake to check I was okay. I was overwhelmed by everyone’s concern and thankful to have so many people looking out for me, even at such a great distance. It goes to show that ‘out of sight’ does not necessarily mean ‘out of mind’ and I’m so grateful to everyone. I am also hugely thankful that of all the people I know in Japan, not a single one was killed or injured by the events, though a couple have been displaced. Everyone I know is safe; a small mercy amidst such a huge disaster.

As the days have passed by since the 11th March, there have been some pretty scary moments involving Fukushima, especially in the early days when hydrogen explosions rocked four of the reactors. I have never studied nuclear reactors in any detail; fortunately I am lucky enough to have people in my life who really know their stuff as far as nuclear physics goes. From afar they have reassured me and given me the strength to carry on without fear. Others, understandably, have been scared for me, shaken by what has been reported by the BBC and unnerved by speculation by various people on the television. Even tonight, as things seem to be being brought under control, a friend was astounded that I had not yet flown back to the UK. I think I should explain why, as I know there are still friends and relatives back home who are confused by my decision.

I am far away from where the earthquake struck, where the tsunami swept inshore, and from where Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant is situated. The FCO recommends Britons stay outside an exclusion radius of 80km around the nuclear plant. I am many miles away even from the border of this exclusion zone. I am in Hyogo prefecture, the other side of Japan with mountains in between. I felt the earthquake, but have not been affected at all.

I love Japan. I love the politeness with which people treat each other. I am in awe of their resolve to ‘keep calm and carry on.’ I admire their resilience as a nation, their determination to rebuild, their kindness and their spirit. I want to be a part of that.

There is nothing else I can do. I can’t get on a train and go up there, as much as I would like to. I want to turn up in Tohoku, join a search and rescue team and help them look for survivors. But it’s not that simple. All I can do is stay here, donate money, continue to work and teach like I came here to do, and spend money in this country. For their economy, which faces a rocky few years ahead, my money is a small drop in a vast ocean. But I feel beyond any shadow of a doubt that the Japanese deserve my tiny contribution more than the country I left behind eight months ago. Cameron doesn’t need my sort in his ‘big society’ anyway, and he never had my respect. But the Japanese? I owe them more than they’ll ever know for the lessons they have taught me this year.

I realise this is the most opinionated post I have ever written. I also know some of you will be thinking I am foolish for trusting the Japanese government over Fukushima. My trust is well-founded, I believe that with all my heart. I believe that the best country in the world for dealing with this situation is Japan, and whilst there have inevitably been radiation leaks (which are small when put into context) and food contamination within the affected area (limited to the affected area), I think that is to be expected. It is a nuclear accident rated 5 on the scale of nuclear emergencies, after all, and I'm certainly not denying that it is a situation to worry about. But panicking, buying up all the supplies of iodine tablets, hoarding rice and noodles.. It just isn’t going to resolve the situation. Panicking is never the answer, we just have to do what we can until the worst is over. If things deteriorate drastically (I pray that they won’t) then I imagine JET will release us from our contracts and I will come home. But I don’t believe it will come to that so in the meantime, like the rest of the nation, I’m going to keep calm and carry on. I’m following the example of the Japanese and hoping that, in the smallest of ways, I can do my part in helping them get back on their feet again as a nation.

Things I never thought I would do in Japan...

Speak like an American

The students and teachers at my school have overwhelmingly been exposed to American resources and American English. Unlike some JETs, I didn’t power in thinking ‘Right! This has to stop! Only my English will be used from now on.’ I didn’t stop anyone using American words or American spelling because, at the end of the day, communication is what language is all about. As long as they’re doing things correctly in English, I don’t mind which English-speaking country they base their language on. Why confuse them more?

What I didn’t expect to find myself doing was changing my own speech. In order to make myself understood more easily by the other teachers I sometimes resort to American words to avoid having to explain myself. For example ‘mail’ instead of ‘post’, ‘trash’ instead of ‘rubbish’, ‘vacation’ instead of 'holiday'. I don’t like it, but it makes things easier. As long as I don’t unwittingly change my accent though, I guess it’s okay.

Change how I dress and act to fit in

I underestimated how far I would change my behaviour to fit in around here. In the summer I stopped baring my shoulders for fear of offending someone. I had to remove my nose piercing at the principal’s request, lest the students take drawing pins to their own noses. I’m significantly more submissive in front of authority figures and tend to ‘let things go’ more when someone upsets me. When I speak, even in English, I find myself skirting around making a direct request so I don’t come across as too brash to a Japanese person. I actually don’t particularly like acting this way as I always considered myself a polite person to begin with. One thing I’m looking forward to about coming home is relaxing a little and just being myself.

Gain weight

I was adamant that I would not gain weight out here, but the winter munchies appear to have taken their toll. What else can I do when I’m surrounded by so many temptations? My work trousers are getting tight and I’m certainly not going to buy new ones. As of Monday, we diet.

Complain about Japan

I’m not a Japan-basher, and I certainly know people who complain a lot more than me about how things get done around here. However, I do often wonder why a country as technologically advanced as Japan has yet to get to grips with insulation and central heating. No, heated toilet seats do not compensate for this.

Enjoy Japanese food more than British food

People can slate the English for their cuisine all they want (for the record, France, you are just kidding yourselves. Italy beats you hands down.) But I love our Yorkshire puddings, our Bakewell tarts, our Red Leicester cheese and our pies. For me, British food equals Comfort food. I was not expecting, therefore, to be converted so wholeheartedly to Japanese cuisine. Fish! Tofu! Miso! Onigiri! Okonomiyaki! Yakisoba! Ginger! Soy sauce! Luckily I have already tracked down some Japanese food stores on the internet for when I get home. Sorry Italy, sorry France, you take third and fourth place respectively.

Learn Japanese so slowly

So it turns out Japanese is actually really difficult. Who knew??

Keep calm and carry on

Commuting makes me a bad person. It’s true. Nothing brings out the rage in me like the morning commute of my Tuesdays and Fridays. I start by catching the bus down the road from my shoebox. Err.. I mean.. apartment. This is the smoothest part of the journey. Less than ten minutes down the narrow, winding road, it drops the passengers off at the train station - this is where it all goes wrong. I head towards the stairs and get swept back by the school kids on their way out of the station. I try to use the ‘up’ side of the stairs but it is being used mostly by people coming down. I grit my teeth and dodge the onslaught as best I can, powering my way up the stairs and into the station. Once through the ticket barriers, I hear my train arrive on the platform so I make a break for it… but ignorant businessmen push in front of me, blocking my path with their huge ‘I’m so important’ suitcases. Then, they commit the biggest crime of commuting (in my opinion) - once they have pushed in front of me, they SLOW DOWN. Gah!

I miss my train by mere seconds. I watch it pull away without me as the businessmen settle on the platform to wait for the next train which goes to Osaka (and, coincidentally, does not stop at my station.)

When the next train that I can take arrives, it is full to bursting. I get on and am pushed in all directions by many people. Half of them are wearing facemasks and I feel like I might be in some movie about a deadly virus and the end of the world. Half of them are not wearing facemasks. Those who aren’t wearing facemasks cough without putting their hand in front of their mouth. Someone coughs in my hair and I fight the urge to head butt them on the nose.

Two minutes before I arrive at my connecting station, someone breaks wind. In the warm and crowded carriage (so crowded that if I were to faint, I would remain on my feet until the doors opened) the cabbagey scent is suffocating. I fight the urge to vomit.

At my station, the end of the line, the doors open and belch the passengers onto the platform. Small schoolchildren as young as five run out and weave in between people’s legs to hit the stairs first. Sometimes they trip me up. Most of the time these days, I see them coming. The escalators have a system - stand on the right, walk on the left. Needless to say, the times that I choose the escalator some jerk always steps out in front of me and STOPS on the left. Naturally, people behind me get irate. Must be my fault of course, they can’t see the guy in front of me and I’m very obviously a foreigner. I can’t have figured out the walking rule yet! Gah!

Inside the station I charge down to my connecting train and see it waiting on the platform. Once again people stretch across the staircase, sleepily blocking my path down to the train as they stare into space. Sometimes I say a loud SUMIMASEN as I squeeze past and force myself through the closing doors of the train.

Half the journey complete, and this train only has to go one stop. It is less crowded than the first and is mainly carrying school kids. At my station the door opens and I step towards it.. but the children don’t budge. It takes a good three SUMIMASENs before they scowl up at me and step aside to let me off the train. Seriously kids, WHY stand in front of the door if you don’t want to move aside when people need to get off??

I now need to get the bus to the top of a not inconsiderable hill. The bus is already full when it leaves the bus station, and luckily I learned very early on to stand at the front. As it happens, when you need to get off the bus too, people seem to think that if they ignore you then you won’t need to walk past them and they won’t need to stand aside. The bus picks up a large number of passengers on the way and literally heaves its way up the steep incline. By the time I step off the bus I have been coughed on at least two more times and every second time I get this bus one of the kids breaks wind (I have learnt not to breathe too deeply on this bus.) I think it may be the same kid each time. When I work out who it is I will call his mother and tell her to stop feeding him or her cat food before school.

From the bus stop it’s a ten minute walk uphill to my school, and though it’s the coldest or sweatiest part of my journey, depending on the season, it is also my favourite part. Why? Because I normally have full-on commuter rage by this point and need to breathe calmly and deeply before I eventually walk into the office with my cheeriest ohayo gozaimasu..!!