The7thSamurai
Master of the Universe
- 4 Feb 2005
- 765
- 27
I've just got back from my first ever Japanese public bath experience, after living here for almost two years! I'd wanted to go for such a long time, but nerves and procrastination held me back, plus the fact that my American neighbour goes to one every night because his apartment doesn't have a bath or shower put me off a bit - a didn't particularly feel like bumping into one of my neighbours during my first bumbling experience.
There are two sentos in my neighbourhood here in Osaka, both about a five minute walk from my house. Although one looks a little classier than the other, I chose the less classy looking one thinking it'd be nice and simple.
So for the past two days I did as much research as a could on what to expect. I basically had the whole experience mapped out in my mind, and luckily enough, it turned out to be pretty much what I expected, with no major problems whatsoever.
I made sure to arrive late at night when it would be less busy, which turned out to be a good move as there were only about three or four men in there when I arrived. After putting my shoes into the locker out the front, I casually walked through the door and paid the 320 yen to the man at the front, acting as if I knew exactly what I was doing. Then I saw all the lockers to the side, exactly as I had read about. I got undressed, and took my soap, shampoo, and small towel into the bath area and found a plastic stool next to a free set of taps and shower. There was an old dude and a young dude scrubbing away, so I decided to scrub until they had both finished. My body ended up getting the scrubbing (and rinsing!) of a lifetime, as the two other men just washed and washed and washed. Finally I was fine to get into the bath...and boy was it hot! I think I only lasted about 5 minutes, although I'm not really sure as the whole experience was kind of surreal on the one hand, but also exactly what I had expected on the other.
One thing that surprised (and relieved!) me was that, although I was a big 6 foot white guy intruding into an ultra-Japanese tradition no one stared at me at all. Everyone just minded their own business - just looking in space mostly.
So now the hard part is finally over and done with and I think I might try enjoying the sento experience more often. Like I said, there are two sento just down the street from me, plus another one a little futher away, plus two others on my ride home from the gym. I'm looking forward to a relaxing soak after a good workout at the gym, hopefully I'll make it part of my regular routine.
I recommend this experience to anyone! But make sure you do a bit of research beforehand. This wiki link helped me out a lot:
Sentō - Wikipedia
It was exactly as it was writting out in that link. From the placement of the lockers, to the bamboo flooring in the changing area, to the faucets, to the whole scrubbing and rinsing rule, even right down to the location of the drink machines and the Japanese garden out the front! The only thing that was different was the men's area was on the right hand side.
There are two sentos in my neighbourhood here in Osaka, both about a five minute walk from my house. Although one looks a little classier than the other, I chose the less classy looking one thinking it'd be nice and simple.
So for the past two days I did as much research as a could on what to expect. I basically had the whole experience mapped out in my mind, and luckily enough, it turned out to be pretty much what I expected, with no major problems whatsoever.
I made sure to arrive late at night when it would be less busy, which turned out to be a good move as there were only about three or four men in there when I arrived. After putting my shoes into the locker out the front, I casually walked through the door and paid the 320 yen to the man at the front, acting as if I knew exactly what I was doing. Then I saw all the lockers to the side, exactly as I had read about. I got undressed, and took my soap, shampoo, and small towel into the bath area and found a plastic stool next to a free set of taps and shower. There was an old dude and a young dude scrubbing away, so I decided to scrub until they had both finished. My body ended up getting the scrubbing (and rinsing!) of a lifetime, as the two other men just washed and washed and washed. Finally I was fine to get into the bath...and boy was it hot! I think I only lasted about 5 minutes, although I'm not really sure as the whole experience was kind of surreal on the one hand, but also exactly what I had expected on the other.
One thing that surprised (and relieved!) me was that, although I was a big 6 foot white guy intruding into an ultra-Japanese tradition no one stared at me at all. Everyone just minded their own business - just looking in space mostly.
So now the hard part is finally over and done with and I think I might try enjoying the sento experience more often. Like I said, there are two sento just down the street from me, plus another one a little futher away, plus two others on my ride home from the gym. I'm looking forward to a relaxing soak after a good workout at the gym, hopefully I'll make it part of my regular routine.
I recommend this experience to anyone! But make sure you do a bit of research beforehand. This wiki link helped me out a lot:
Sentō - Wikipedia
It was exactly as it was writting out in that link. From the placement of the lockers, to the bamboo flooring in the changing area, to the faucets, to the whole scrubbing and rinsing rule, even right down to the location of the drink machines and the Japanese garden out the front! The only thing that was different was the men's area was on the right hand side.