On the second day, we were scheduled to visit 3 temples. First temple was Kiyomizu temple. Second one was Ginkakuju (silver) temple and then third Kinkakuju temple. The last place we went to was Nizaemon no yu, a bath house.
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| I forgot to take a picture of our room the day before. This is where we slept. Yao and Pisenny were my roomies. |
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| Ticket |
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| Our tour guide was awesome! He was so cool. He even brought and MADE small models of the pagodas and explained them to us. I learned quite a lot about Japan that I did not know of after this trip. |
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| That big tower is where our hotel is at! |
Ginkakuji Temple:
Kinkakuji Temple
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| This is a bonzai pine tree! |
Nizaemon no yu (a bath house)
Of course, no pictures. But I would have to say, it was an interesting experience for me because it was my first time. As an American, it was a big shocker for me and I thought I would not be able to enter the hot springs because it does require you to take ALL your clothes off. But because I am in Japan for the experience, why not right? Most, and I mean it, hot springs/bath houses are separated base on gender. So no worries! One major thing I did learn from this is that it is a beautiful part of the Japanese culture. In every day life, the Japanese seem to be very modest, shy and reserve about things they do. That's why I'm glad they have something like onsen (hot spring) where they don't need to worry about how their body looks. And there you'll find very young to elderly people if you ever go. It may feel weird at first, but once you're in there, stripped down, it is a very normal thing and it will feel so natural (well, at least for me).
The typical rules for taking a bath/entering hot spring in Japan. (Info taken from www.atamiseaside.com/en/pages/hotspring.html)
Taking the bath in Japanese style is simple! Bring with you the small towel and bath towel that will be provided in the guest room. Undress in the dressing room and place your clothes in the basket/shelf provided. Then enter the bathing area with the small towel.
You are only to go inside the bath tub after you washed your body first (using the small towel) in the washing/shower area next to the bathing tubs. Since people rinse their bodies in hot spring tubs, washing beforehand using shower and soap helps keep the water in the bath tub clean. The rinsing and washing of your body with hot water also acclimatizes you to the actual temperature of the bath tubs. Also, do not jump into the water like diving into a swimming pool.
Please do not put the small towel into the bath tub water. The towel is mainly for washing your body. Most people place the towel on their head. And remember not to use any soap or shampoo or other skin cleansers in the bath tubs.
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