Of Museums and Onsens....

So, about 2 weeks ago or so I went with my supervisor Yasuko to a museum. It was actually pretty amazing, but unfortunately the only thing we were allowed to take pictures of was the outside, so whee. This is a giant horse made out of flowers that guards the entrance to the museum, and he is currently wearing a sumo diaper in honor of the sumo display they have at the adjoining museum at the moment. The inside of the museum was all modern art displays, but they were actually really interesting. There was one that was just this white room with a chair on top of a table, and a seal's body hanging down from one part of the ceiling. Which was....weird. But then, you were told to climb on top of the chair, and when you do that there's a hole in the ceiling that you put your head through, and you see this whole amazing lake scene, with the seal's head greeting you as he's sticking out of the water. It was probably my favorite thing actually, since it was so unexpected. There was also a display where you walked into a giant chandelier, and all the crystal bits were shaped like men, and they were all different colors. There was also a giant old woman, who was maybe three times as tall as me, but was proportionate and looked real. You walked in the room and thought that they had captured some sort of real life relative of Hagrid or something... In any case, it was really cool, and I wish I had more pictures, but such is life. The only other picture I have is at the end of this post, which is of the wall you walk along to get to the museum. I thought the little crow statues were cute. :)

After the museum, Yasuko took me to experience my first onsen. An onsen, for those of you who don't know, is a giant public bath, that is usually outdoors, and is fueled by natural hot springs that come out of the mountains here. Basically, you get naked, go outside with a bunch of strangers, and sit in a natural hot spa. Did I mention the naked part? It was really strange, and at first I didn't think I would be able to do it... but eventually I calmed down. After watching my fifth 80 year old grandma walk by naked as the day she was born I stopped being so self-conscious. It was actually incredibly relaxing to be honest. The water feels amazing, it's so nice and warm and has this really unique smell. It also makes your skin amazingly, amazingly soft. You just sit outside, looking at the trees changing into their autumn colors, while the natural water bubbles around you and keeps you warm. I can see why the Japanese are so fond of them, and once you get over the whole naked thing it's really enjoyable. I even want to go back again... but I think I want to lose a lot of weight first. Japanese women make me look gargantuan.