The hot springs

“So, I just take my clothes off now?” I knew that this was a stupid question but it was all I could do to delay the inevitable.

Noriko nonchalantly said yes and began undressing. We were in something like a locker room at a hotel which features natural hot springs. I had walked into this adventure knowing full well what had to be done. Luckily, we had the place to ourselves; it was a weekday so we were conveniently missing out on the crowds.

We undressed, placing every stitch of clothing in the basket provided. I watched as Noriko fitted the full-sized towel she brought with her over the basket once it had her clothes in it. That’s strange, I thought to myself. How is she going to walk out to the hot spring without the…oh…slowly the realization dawned on me as she picked up the little hand towel and headed for the door. Trying not to balk at such an absurdity (what—no robe, no towel, no clothes), I did the same and followed her out the door.

We stepped out into the brisk fifty degree air. I continued to keep a close eye on Noriko as this whole scene was new to me. She walked over, ever so casually, to the faucets that were a few paces away from the hot spring and picked up a bowl. She filled it with warm water and poured it over her hands and feet. Then she turned, walked a few paces and stepped into the water.
Mutely, I did the same. I tried taking my mind off how strange all of this felt by noting my surroundings. We were kind of in an alcove, the open side giving way to a fantastic view of the sparse forest. Besides the wall to the hotel, there were bamboo type constructions for the other two enclosing walls. Besides that, we were more or less outside.

I was taking all of this in—trying to act like I hang out naked with my college girlfriends all the time—as I stepped into the scalding water. Now, I was kind of in a difficult spot because I had been telling myself that I would feel better (less exposed anyway) once I reached the water and hid myself in the depths. But submerging oneself into ninety degree water is not the same as diving into a swimming pool on a hot day. No, this required easing in slowly.

And I was in some seriously hot water. I couldn’t believe how hot it was, and that the water comes out of the earth that hot. My feet were gradually acclimating to the heat and I began to inch the rest of myself down into the sweltering pool. I watched clouds of steam billow out towards the trees as I ever so slowly slid down into the hot spring, finally submerged up to my shoulders and sitting on an underwater stone.

Out of nowhere, I heard a man laugh. I froze, as much as that is possible in a hot spring. Where the hell did that come from? Apparently, the men’s hot spring was on the other side of one of the bamboo walls. It was strange having them so close but out of view. How could we be sure that they could not see us?

After that, somehow I allowed myself to relax. The heat kind of melts away everything else. I stopped fretting over how I looked next to the 110 pound sliver of a girl sitting next to me. I stilled that voice in my head that kept saying oh-my-god-I-can’t believe-I’m-doing-this. I sat back and just delighted in the heat suffusing my every feature, drenching my senses. I listened to the water pouring into the pool, felt the moisture kissing my skin as I enjoyed the Zen-like peace.

Of course, you can only take that kind of heat for so long. I was glad to see Noriko climb out and sit on one of the rocks next to the springs. I lifted myself out of the water and took refuge on the edge of the pool as well. That felt amazing. The cool stones pressed up against my bare, pinked flesh. After letting ourselves cool down, we slipped back in for another round. We repeated this cycle about three more times before getting out, making the short trek back to the locker room, toweling off, and going to a different hot spring, one that overlooked the river. Hot spring hopping, a popular past time in Japan.

By that time, it was old hat. I didn’t even mind that we had company in the second one.