Our Ryokan and Onsen Experience

We took a side trip from Tokyo to Shibu Onsen Villege in Nagano Prefecture to stay in a traditional ryokan and visit the snow monkeys.  It took six hours on four trains plus a shuttle for a total cost one way of ¥23,220 ($204). One of the trains was the famous Shinkansen, a bullet train that moves at speeds of up to 200mph. It moves so smoothly that Daddy didn't even realize we were moving when it first took off. It has comfortable seating and you can swivel the row of 3 seats around so you're facing your friends or family, which was perfect for us.

One vista from the train.

We were shocked to go thru a tunnel and come out the other side to a snowy, winter wonderland. Journey said, "aww, it's Christmas Eve!" haha!

Finally we arrived at our new home for the next two nights. Koishiya Ryokan, a traditional Japanese guest house, kind of like a bed and breakfast, with a restaurant on the first floor.

I found these figures at the entrance interesting, not sure of the significance.

Just inside the door they have traditional beta (wooden shoes) and yakatas, similar to kimonos for guests to wear. In the summer, it's common to see the streets in this little village full of travelers in yakatas. Unfortunately it's about 25 degrees (in February), and I'm already wearing every piece of clothing I brought.

We arrived hungry, so we headed straight for the restaurant. 

I love the wooden world map on the wall where people would sign where they're from.

We were seated at a kotatsu, a frame with a heavy blanket then a flat table on top with a heater underneath. We learned that older Japanese buildings have poor insulation and only individual sleeping rooms have heaters, so this allows you to stay warm during dinner.

This small green-tiled entry is called the agari-kamachi, where we remove our shoes. The white paper doors, called shoji, slide across to close off our room. I was shocked at how well they hold the heat.

We have our own kotatsu (table) on the tatami (reed mat flooring). 

When it's time for bed, we stretch out our futons and blankets 

on the ground and sleep with buckwheat hull pillows.

In the morning, we woke to fresh snow falling. 

Asher said he prayed for snow and God answered his prayer. 

This is the view from our room, overlooking the street below.

After breakfast, our hosts dropped us off at the Jidokudani Yaen-koen trailhead to see the snow monkeys (which I will post about separately). Afterwards, we chose to walk back to the ryokan so we could see the whole village. 

I'm pretty sure this is a firetruck. It's hard to tell for certain.

We did see firemen jump out of a van one day, which was an odd sight for us.

The street where our ryokan is located.

One of the public bath houses. One door for men and another for women.

We stopped in a shop and the kids picked out some squid to snack on. 

The Onsen Experience

We took the kids to an onsen, a traditional Japanese public bath. This might seem crazy to some people, but we really like to experience the culture when we're in a new place and you just can't go to Japan and not experience an onsen.

The water comes from the natural hot springs and is a burning hot! Some of the pools are hotter than others and at the Yoroduya Onsen where we were, there was also an ice cold bath as well. The men and women have separate areas. The women's area has 2 hot baths plus the ice cold bath inside and another hot bath outside.

How do you prep two 5yr olds for an onsen? Well it went something like this- An onsen is a public bath where everyone is naked in the water together. "DO NOT make any comments about anyone and DO NOT point at anyone!" We instructed them to whisper CARFEFULLY IN OUR EAR if they had a question!

 There are very strict rules about how to use an onsen. First you arrive to a room where you remove all your clothes and put them in a basket. You bring your own (hotel provided) bath towel and wash cloth. Leave the towel with your clothes. The small wash cloth can be used to cover yourself as you enter and leave the onsen. Let's face it, that 8" square cloth isn't going to cover much, you might as well leave your modesty with your clothes.

Next you enter the onsen area where there are usually one or two pools and washing stations along the wall or perimeter, these are not sectioned off, you're completely out in the open. You immediately go to a washing station and wash yourself head to toe with the provided soap and shampoo, but you must sit to do this. Do not stand to wash. Once you are clean and rinsed off, you may enter the water and either hold your wash cloth above the water or put it on your head, which is where most people keep it, but it must never touch the water. Swimming is not allowed, simply soak in the hot, mineral water and enjoy.

I really wish I could have taken pictures inside to show you what it's like, but of course that's not allowed. The last three pictures at this link are from the onsen we were at.

The verdict- The kids both said it was fun. I don't even think the nakedness phased them at all. They had no comments or questions once we were there. Daddy said it was ok, but he had no desire to do it again. I enjoyed the experience and went to a different onsen the following night.

Afterwards, our host drove us back to our ryokan. The next morning we relaxed a bit before heading off to Matsumoto. Watching something on Daddy's iPad.