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A Naked Foreigner in the Spirited Away Bath
How it feels getting naked for the first time in a Japanese onsen
Moving to the city of Matsuyama on the island of Shikoku in Japan, I keep pushing my limits every day. After all, I’ll be living here quite a while, so why not get the best of what it has to offer?
That requires pushing myself out of my comfort zone.
I visited Dogo Onsen hot springs bath famous from the movie Spirited Away 3 times this month without entering. I stood before its entrance and returned. The thought of stripping naked in front of strangers caused me to shudder.
But today was a new day. Hot springs were stuck in my mind and I just had to check out what all that hype was about. Besides, can you really complete your Japan experience without ever entering an onsen?
So in I went. Dogo Onsen in Matsuyama, Ehime, if you didn’t know, is the oldest onsen in Japan with a 3000-year history.
Yeah, all the fascinating facts were a blur as I walked uneasily to the structure’s entrance. The kind old man (staff) at the entrance handed me a slot token.
I returned later at the allotted time and walked in. What I had predicted to be an awkward procedure wasn’t even close. The staff seemed to be somewhere aware of my…
