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bath houses and tattoos

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okaeri_man

Tadaima!
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so i take it it's true that if you have a tattoo you can't enter a public bath? not that i have a tattoo (yet), and not that i've been in a public bath (yet) or want to (yet), i think if i had a tattoo i would have more confidence in going into such a bath...

so what would happen if a foreigner with a big pretty tattoo on their back went into a bath house? if they asked me to leave i would refuse. it goes against human bloody rights. not that i want to go to a public bath (yet)... lol.
 
You have too wear a shirt I think.

My friend can't to a few gyms in the area unless he wears a T-shirt.

One gym even said he can only enter if he wears a LONG sleeve shirt.
 
Great timing! I have a feature on that up right now.

Japannewbie.com

Basically.. it doesn't matter. No one will know unless you're blazing the tatoo before you even get in the ofuro. Even if they do, they won't say anything. You'll just get nasty looks.
 
The Tattoo, the Dragon, and the Bearcub

A hypothetical question, yet interesting, OkaeriMan-san.

The Chinese dynastic histories say that the southern people of Wu living by the sea had tattoos to ward off the sea-dragons. It also says that the ancient Japanese people of Wo, and the ancient Koreans in the southern region also had tattoos for the same reason.

What I'm saying is, the principle function of flashing tattoos remains basically unchanged in modern Japan. It scares the sea-dragons; will it not scare the ordinary citizen?

So whatever bloody right your may be imagining, it has to, it must, without exception, yield to the right of the ordinary citizen to live without being unduely intimidated. Isn't it so, OkaeriMan-san?

Remember, many public baths are unisex. In fact, you may find a local bear wanting to share the hot spring with you. You wouldn't want to scare him/her, either, would you?
 
Yeah, I would have to agree with Harvey about onsens. I have entered many onsens bearing a tatoo on my arm and a pierced nipple, and I have yet to have anybody tell me to get the hell out. I have seen some dirty looks, but I just smiled back and chilled in the sulfuric waters. I do know though at many gyms they have rules where a tatoo can not be shown at all while working out. Also, like in Japan and Korea there is kinda a new trend in the youth getting tattoos, so maybe it is a little more laxed on these rules that were established to keep out the "Yakuza."
 
interesting site harvey, thanks for that.

lexico said:
So whatever bloody right your may be imagining, it has to, it must, without exception, yield to the right of the ordinary citizen to live without being unduely intimidated. Isn't it so, OkaeriMan-san?
Click to expand...
personally i would be more intimidated being a room full of a dozen other naked males than seeing someone with a tattoo. furthermore, how does a tattoo make someone scary? one would think an un-tattooed serial killer, or an un-tattooed salary man that collects high school girls' soiled underpants would be scarier.
 
okaeri_man said:
Furthermore, how does a tattoo make someone scary?
Click to expand...
Depending on the /type/ of tattoo it's the equivalent of a big sign hung round his neck saying "Yakusa".
okaeri_man said:
One would think an un-tattooed serial killer, or an un-tattooed salary man that collects high school girls' soiled underpants would be scarier.
Click to expand...
But neither of those carries a sign round _their_ neck identifying them as such.
 
well a foreigner can't be yakuza, so tattooed foreigners must be ok.
 
okaeri_man said:
well a foreigner can't be yakuza, so tattooed foreigners must be ok.
Click to expand...
Yeah, but what bath house is going to put up a sign saying
"No Yakusa Allowed."

"No Tattoos" is a lot safer.
 
I've had a mate kicked out for a tattoo before, depends on the size and what it is, half body skulls and death symbols will get some serious words and all sorts of trouble, something on the arm will just get the typical 'damned gaijin' look
 
Last time I was at an onsen, there was a guy there that had huge tattoos all over his upper body, like dragons and stuff, and noone said anything to him.
 
If you're discreet,

you can often get away with having a tattoo in places that forbid them. The law is aimed at the yakuza, not some gaijin with a tiny butterfly on their ankle.
I know a guy who just puts some duct tape over his arm and goes in, and another who doesn't even bother to do that. He just keeps his towel over it when he's walking around.
 
mad pierrot said:
I know a guy who just puts some duct tape over his arm and goes in.
Click to expand...
You know, that's quite creative. I wish I had a buuterfly to cover with some duck tape....
Slightly off topic, but did you know that you can actually have a friendly conversation with ppl equipped with homicidal techniques ?
I once saw a heavily tatooed gentleman in a sauna, but wasn't that scared. Still I felt some urge to keep clear of his way, b/c I didn't know him. Felt a little odd during my bath.
The other time I asked a military person with special training, and asked him. How do you get along with ppl with all your deadly reflexes; doesn't it bother you? He said, well with ppl I see every day, I have to be friendly b/c I don't want to scare them off. I need them.
 
I haven't been to O-furo here in Japan, but in Taipei, I've been to a San-wen-nuan (I guess it's borrowing from Sauna), and it's full of middle aged man in huge dragons and tigers tattoo. I was apprehensive about it, and went arond as if I didn't notice them. After O-furo, we were seated at nice sofa and we can order any time of drinks, I ordered a hot Kumquat juice and had a short exchange with my fellow Aniu. Soon a mama-chan came out an inquire us if we want 'special service'. Since I am not a fan of sex shopping, I give her a shake on the head and she went away. We never went back to San-wen-nuan eversince.

ﾆ但ﾆ誰ﾆ湛
 
That, ax is simply hilarious. No wonder the owners of those places want to put a cap on tatoo carriers who happen to be onsenophiles! Now I wonder how they, the yakuza, are responding to this. Any unusual rise in yakuza related crimes or mishaps since the new public bath policy?

It appears that tatoos were special marks of leadership in 15th century BCE China. Wenwang 窶｢ﾂｶ窶ｰﾂ､, the second king of the Zhou ﾅｽﾃｼ dynasty is believed to have carried a huge tatoo on his chest. 窶伉ｾ窶敘? the first son of 窶｢ﾂ絶?ｰﾂ､ and the legendary ancestor of the kingdom of Wu 吳, is said to have scattered hair and tatoos, a habit he picked up from the south easterners, dwellers of the current Shanghai region. I believe some Japanese considered themselves the descendents of 窶伉ｾ窶敘? possibly due to this tatoo connection; maybe, maybe not. Interesting theory that deserves some serious study, though.

The etymology of the character 窶｢ﾂｶ [ky. Fumi, aya, kazaru, moji, takumi; oy: G. mon, K. bun] is supposedly "tatoo" rather than "character" or "writing," which are later developments. Which Japanese kunyomi means "tatoo?"
 
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