It's confusing.
No, I'm not supposed to be on medication.
When we left off, Kirk and I had been swatted out into a rainy, fishy alley in the Outer Market, full from a 21-minute meal of superior sushi at Daiwa. The time was 8:41.
Or wait... foggy, but it's coming back... (yes, I know I could check, but I don't feel like it.) ... I had taken you through the whirl, splash, shlosh and sawing of Tsukiji interior.
Ah... there we are.
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| red caped stone foxes at Namiyoke Inari shrine nearby |
It is 10am and raining.
Now what?
It's silly, I know. More than silly really. Downright dumb. But in spite of my years of living in Boston and traveling globally, rain is like kryptonite to me when I'm out of my regular element. Like Elphaba, Wicked Witch of the West... like a pat of butter... I am brought low by rain and the accessories required to manage it comfortably. It makes me feel... disintegrated.
I'd checked the weather forecasts from home and planned my wardrobe options carefully. I have umbrellas, layers, I even waterproofed our shoes... Kirk's sturdy and treaded, bootlets, and my... red suede ankle boots. [I can hear the groaning from here] It. is. madness. I knew and I know. But the waterproofing worked pretty well and they are the only smallish, light, flat-soled boots that I own. My regular rain boots are large and heavy and terrific... but LARGE and HEAVY and therefore, no good for a place like this where light and petite are the requirement.
The red suede boots did pretty darn well today. They triumphed over the fish market... the FREAKIN' FISH MARKET without a speck or a stain!
[Sure... now you'll be lining up to have me weatherproof *your* favorite inappropriate footwear.]
****Back to the meat of it****
What to do as a tourist in the rain?
ONSEN! Yes, I decided (and Kirk, bless him, agreed) that rather than slog through any 'hood in a river of umbrellas, we could use this grey and gloomy day to go to my favorite, Spa-Fairgrounds, Oedo-Onsen Monogatari!
I thrill at the local penchant for combining experiences. Who says that massage and hot springs baths shouldn't be events for whole families and groups of friends? Why not add carnival games and cotton candy too?! You like those things, right? Sure you do! Photo booths, shopping, a bar or 4, and a meditation room? Hell yes! Let's have it all in one place.
Wait, what? Why should *we* have all the fun?
That's thoughtful... darnit, you're right... Fido is sitting at home bored and alone while we revel and omh and frolic and soak our cares away. Not Fair! Let's make an adjacent spa-park for the pups too. The more, the merrier!
I give you... Oedo-Onsen Monogatari. A wonderland in any weather.
Giddy with anticipation, we cruised across town on the subway/el/monorail. I could see it from the train! (some small part of me hoped, of course, that it lived up to my memory and that Kirk would find it as thrilling as I do)
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| Clock seen from the metro |
And so it was.
No money in the interior of the onsen. All transactions are with a scan of your wristband. So easy. So positively carefree. You're here to relax... don't even think about bringing your wallet.
We deposited out shoes into one locker.
Selected our yukata (sadly, they no longer have fun characters on them, but instead have traditional scenes and patterns. It used to be like choosing an avatar to wear on your back.).
Split up to change into our robes (and underpants, and bare feet).
And reconvened in a historic Japanese village... mock-up.... charming and incredibly comfortable. Imagine the interior of Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean ride.. The cool dry air. The faux night sky and gentle lighting. It's like that.... but Japan and pirate-free.
We made appointments for shiatsu massages, then went to explore the grounds beginning with the exterior (yes, in the rain). The spa had quilted jackets and umbrellas available for us. We took umbrellas and left the jackets and ventured out, wading through steaming hot springs shallows and into.... FISH PEDICURE!
I know it's gimmicky, but it's fun, and it tickles and it's different, so we did it. Kirk, though ticklish of foot, was delighted. This was the only area of the spa that was all foreigners. Otherwise the spa is about 90% Japanese. 15 minutes of fishy foot feasting was enough, and we spent a bit of time wading again. The stream flows over a progression of pebbles. You are supposed to walk the length of the stream in the water, over the rocks. At first the pebbles are comfortable, on their sides and mostly imbedded into the ground. In the next stage, the water just at the lower-calf, the rocks are embedded... on their ends, protruding sharply from the ground and a minor agony to traverse. Stage 3, the pebbles, still on end, are larger and closer set. Less uncomfortable, but still not soothing. And then the pattern reverses. There's a series of photos documenting my trip through the stream, but I'll only include the smiling ones and leave the grimacing faces out of the mix.
Next activity: onsen time. I gave Kirk a quick tutorial in the pre-washing. Double-checked my back in the mirror to make sure that the poxy-looking bug bites were no longer scary-looking. And into our separate baths we went.
There are about a dozen indoor, slate and marble-lined pools. Most are varying degrees of hot. A couple are warm. One is a cold plunge. And there are baths with jets. Baths with unfiltered, tea-colored spring water. Sizes vary, but they are generally a couple feet deep and definitely spacious enough to be communal. There is also a sauna, a steam room, a salt-bed room, and some other nooks I didn't examine. The space is illuminated by natural light from the 25' windows along the back. My favorite is the outdoor pool area. Some pools are grotto-like, with large rocks and and leafy plants landscaping for more privacy. Others are large cedar tubs. At this point it is merely drizzling, but there is a mesh canopy over most of the area anyway.
I could spend hours and hours luxuriating here.
But I had allotted us 40 minutes to start.
When the time came, I robed up again, and met Kirk for some games and a village stroll. We competed at a version of Guitar Hero with taiko drums. Japanese whack-a mole. Other silly contests. We made faces in photo booths (the whole photo booth thing here is W-A-Y past what we have at home and I LOVE it! More on that later.). And enjoyed green tea soft-serve and beers.
And then it was massage time.
Robes on, we lay face-down on low tables in a quiet communal space. At the beginning of shiatsu massages, I often think that nothing is really happening. Pushing pressure points instead of the deeper kneading of Swedish massage...ok... and then, about 10 minutes into it, I feel things changing. The stress points in my muscles migrate and shift and then.... dissipate. Magic.
By the time we left, 3 1/2 hours later, we were clean, relaxed, and happy. Happy enough to spend a few extra minutes in the rain to check out Dog Spa. Had you forgotten about Dog Spa? It's attached to the onsen. At Dog Spa, pups can swim or play, have massage and grooming, there are costumes and toys and snacks. Just like in ours.
For the first night since we arrived, we made it to dinner. In the hotel, but a restaurant still.
The basement here has a half dozen places to dine. We opted for yakatori.... food on sticks. Fun and tasty.
****
More rain forecast for the 14th. How will we manage?
Tune in for the next episode.
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