Oct  11 & 12th - Onsen

Our Ryokan

After a couple days in Tokyo we took the Sinkansen bright and early to Kyoto and then regular trains up to a small tourist town called Kinosaki Onsen. "Onsen" means "hot spring" in Japanese. The town has 7 official bath houses all fed from the natural hot spring. (Here's their website if anyone is interested).

We were staying at a fancy hotel called a ryokan. They are traditional Japanese inns, and typically have tatami flooring (woven mats), nice views, fancy food, and sometimes private baths. We received an individual welcome, and then we chose yukata from their selection to wear during our stay. A yukata is the summer version of a kimono. It is typically only one layer and made from a thinner cotton cloth, historically dyed indigo but now often featuring bright patterns. They are attached with an obi, or a wide fabric belt. The men wear their bows at the side-front, but women wear them at the back. (And I will be at least a little petty about how long I spent getting my bow to look pretty only to have it hidden in all the photos.)

When out and about the ryokan also provided us with geta, or traditional wooden sandals. They are rather like wooden flipflops. There are extra pieces added to the bottom so you can sort of roll off the ball of your foot when walking, but between the sandals and long narrow yukata skirt, no one is running around town!

Onsen

The primary reason to visit a place like Kinosaki is to relax. Enjoy a high level of service at your hotel, eat a large traditional meal, and visit as many onsen as you desire. Ryokans in Kinosaki provide their guests with passes to enter any of the 7 official onsen, so you can spend plenty of time trying out and soaking in the various baths.

Each one is a little different and we visited 4. For all of them, you arrive and store your shoes before entering the changeroom and removing all your clothes. No swimsuits allowed. Then you enter the main bath area where there are seated showers typically along the outside walls. You get cleaned up (you can bring your own toiletries if you desire and you can rent or bring your own towel) and then you can dip into the main baths. Fancier ones have lots of different temperatures or types available. We have seen electric baths, herb baths, cold baths, scorching baths, and baths with jets or bubbles. Some places have saunas, or outdoor sections as well.

I know the idea of being naked with a bunch of strangers may not be everyone's cup of tea, but I really enjoyed the baths. It's a lot like a spa back home but without the swimsuit. I have visited bath houses in other cities as well, and hearing the old ladies greet and catch up with their friends is sweet, but otherwise everyone is minding their own business and enjoying a good soak in a warm, steamy room.

Straw craft museum

When we were out for a walk after checking in at the hotel we saw that Kinosaki has a straw craft museum so naturally I had to visit (twice). The way the designs are created is quite interesting. I expected "straw craft" to be things like weaving hats, or baskets, but that isn't the case at all. 

First, straw is dyed, or left it's natural colour. The pieces of straw are then split open and flattened, so they produce a narrow flat strip. Those strips are then further split into smaller strands by pulling the strip over a sharp cutting tool. Next, a glue made by mashing and mixing rice with water is applied and spread over the straw. This allows the artists to glue many different coloured strips of straw next to each other. By slicing in various directions and gluing the strips together again in different ways, some interesting geometric patterns are created. The artist then glues their final patterns onto a box or a board to create a geometric or artistic design.

If that's confusing, this short video may help. There isn't much direct demonstration, but the gentleman does have the straw to show each stage of the process. 

I was also able to make an ornament decorated with the straw myself. The pieces were precut, but I was able to choose from a selection of designs, and then do the gluing myself. The woman at the museum didn't speak English, but she was well prepared with a translated instruction sheet and gesturing gets you quite far!

Drone flying

Our stay in Kinosaki Onsen was pretty short, only 1 day total. So on our second day, after breakfast + Onsen, we only had a couple hours to fill. Sammi wanted to visit a nearby Marshland, which was perfect for me because I wanted to finally get my drone out and fly around! So the four of us (Marlena split off to do her own thing) rented some bicycles and headed out.

It was only 10 minutes away by bike, and then we were basically in a farmland / mountainous area. We did a bit of biking around the area and snapped a bunch of pictures! I also got what I think is an amazing picture of a Tori Gate in the Water. This section will be mainly a photo dump :)