where cider meets condensed milk: Visit to Bae-Yon-Chris Joon's Winning Mountain Town

where cider meets condensed milk

Sunday, January 29, 2006

Visit to Bae-Yon-Chris Joon's Winning Mountain Town

I went to my first mixed, outdoor onsen, in Yubara. It's famous... because it's outdoors and mixed-sex. It's about 2 hours north of Kamogawa, in Yubara town, and if you drive much further, you'd hit the next prefecture. We were swayed by the tourism poster in the Okayama station tunnel, featuring a girl looking coyly over her shoulder as steam rises from the otherwise empty tub. Perhaps we could have had Bob turning a coy, bearded chin over his shoulder and winking knowingly at the camera, and created a tourism phenomenon of our own. However, Chris and the Betsarazzi were not brave or pervy enough to get close for that shot.

This is a very helpful sign we encountered before getting in. Don't speak/read Japanese? Neither do we! Our translated onsen guidelines: (L to R)

1) No washing in the tub.
2) No pouring beer-- use a can.
3) No samurai mischief.
4) No elderly.
5) No watching... hop in or leave, pervert.
6) No fatties.
7) No touching yourself. (You can, however, collect a good profit for that at one of the Sutorippu Ruumu in town.)
8) No jazz hands.
9) No staring/laughing at baka gaijin (unless they deserve it).
10) No gigantic-hipped blondes in bikinis.

I would have felt less awkward had the gender distribution not been about 12:1, but fortunately a tattoo-emblazoned yakuza chick and her boyfriend hopped in the tub after awhile, so I had some company. Traditional onsens prohibit people with tattoos, but as it wasn't pictured as a no-no on the signpost, it must have been okay. They also brought in several cans of chu-hai (approved by rule # 2 ). The rest of people in there were mostly old Japanese guys.

Snow was falling all afternoon-- here's (M)Adam, predictably underdressed for the cold; shivering Betsy-chan; Huddled Mr Bob; Always Suave Chris-Yon Joon.

Oh no! Adam took one look at Chris' Luxury Mansion (car park and neighbors included!), thought about the Yoshikawa Ice Tray Aparto he called home, and tossed himself 4 floors down. Did he jump... or was he pushed?

Luxury Mansion Sleepover in Katsuyama! We get so much older, and yet never age...

Saru-chan, saru-chan, you are mine! Attempting a five-finger discount at monkey mountain in Katsuyama, though I shouldn't have gotten so close... that big monkey got edgy and was probably getting ready for "ebola jaws" if I took one step closer to the baby.

An alert lookout monkey. Looking out for unsuspecting tourists that deserve ebola jaws, that is. I still get nightmares from "The Hot Zone", so why do I continue to tempt fate?

posted by Raychaa @ 8:00 PM

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