Second Anniversary Soak!

A week before our second anniversary, a couple of my students (Yumi and her father, Seiji) invited us to go with them to a hotel near Shuzenji. Seiji is a retired businessman who spent most of his career managing and owning hotels. He and his family still own the hotel they took us to see. It was a beautiful place with ryokan and modern style rooms. Yumi did all the decorating when they bought the place, upholstering chairs and putting in new carpeting. Here are some pics of the interior:

On the left is a shot from inside one of the ryokan rooms. Tatami mats and low tables typify this kind of space. On the right is a pic of us with part of the Murakami clan. Left to right: Yumi's nephew, Keisuke, Yumi, I, Lisa, and Seiji.

The hotel was located in central Izu, and was right on a river with beautiful landscapes. Japan is an artist's paradise. Unfortunately we arrived after dark, so I couldn't take pics of the outside, but if any of you come visit, we will definitely go over there.


The Murakamis didn't know it, but they gave us a really great anniversary gift. The hotel has a private outdoor onsen. The Onsen is very traditional and luxurious. The Murakamis gave us a complimentary 45 minute soak in the onsen, and so we really enjoyed ourselves.

This is the stone floored shower area of the onsen. The wood stools and buckets were a nice touch. The bamboo walls and wooden support columns made it feel like we were stepping back in time.

This is the onsen itself. It was beautiful to look at, and even nicer to soak in. The wicker screens reveal a lovely view of the river on which the hotel is situated. The weather that day was cold and rainy, so the hot water made it rather foggy in the onsen.

And finally, a shot of us enjoying the hot water! The floor of the onsen was tiled with large flat rocks. There were also volcanic rocks used to make seats in the water. This picture was taken in front of a waterfall that supplied more hot water to the onsen. The chilly air above the water felt exhilarating in contrast to the heat of the onsen. We soaked for about 30 minutes, then got out and dried off. After we made use of the foot massagers in the changing room, we walked our highly relaxed bones back to the lobby and had some green tea. What a great day it was!

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