Japanese Public Bathing Exposed: The Naked Truth- ONLY in JAPAN

[yuiyoshida]

[Spitfire of ATJ]

1. I guess "hadaka no tsukiai" is kinda related to "clothes make the man".

[PoliticAverse]

2. "Yes, that's real bear meat". n/t

[Leith]

3. I Lived in Tokyo for 3 Years Many Many Years Ago

and I went to the local public bath for about a year. Sitting in water that is just a bit too hot really puts the sleepiness into you. Even after the 10 minute walk back home, I would still be toasty warm and drop into the futon as soon as I got home.

The thing I miss most about Japan? My kotatsu. A kotatsu is a table like a card table, but it has a heat lamp under the top. You can remove the top and put a blanket over the frame. Your legs are toasty warm, you can wrap the blanket around your hips, and it's wonderfully comfortable.

Another use for a kotatsu? My old camera broke with half a roll of really good pictures still in it. I waited until it was dark, turned off all the lights, crawled under the kotatsu with the red heat lamp on, and switched the film into the new camera. It actually worked and the pics turned out great.

Edited to add: pics of kotatsus.

[secondwind]

4. I was fine, until I got to the bear meat part, and saw a live bear.. :-(

[Zorro]

5. I've probably been to Japan a couple of dozen times over the years

and have enjoyed the communal baths on several of those trips.

One especially memorable adventure was going to the resort town of Uji. I recall after hopping off the train I had to walk across a bridge spanning the river that bisects the city; along the river edge was a hollowed out pool fed by a hot spring, and there were about ten Japanese men, naked as jaybirds, enjoying the waters. Such activities would get one arrested in the US, but it was no big deal to the Japanese strolling across the bridge, who went along their business.

I really really like Japan. It's unfortunate that it has the reputation for being a very expensive tourist destination, because it's a fascinating country and culture.

[SoapBox]

6. FANtastic!

How interesting...and remember, rich or poor, we're all the same naked!

[SidDithers]

7. DU rec...

thanks for posting!

Sid

[Damansarajaya]

8. This really brings back memories . . .

driving through mountains with the moon shining on snow, shrouded in fog, like a Hokusai print.