Kinosaki Onsen....Japanese style soaking! :)

After a tiring 10 days of travelling through Japan we really felt like giving ourselves a treat and soak in the hot springs of Japan. This was something we were really curious about and were looking forward to this experience for a while!

Having done quite a lot of research on the various Onsen in Japan and considering the different locations, we decided to go for Kinosaki Onsen. Kinosaki is apparently quite a famous Onsen that used to be well visited by some celebrities. There are in total 7 Onsen (hot spring baths) in this village.


Bus pick up service provided from the train station - Pasci helped some old Japanese ladies with their bags which they were really grateful for (bowing lots and lots and lots) / Bus-Abhol-Service war inbegriffen - Pasci hat einigen alten Japanern geholfen mit dem Gepäck wofür sie sehr dankbar waren (sie verbeugten sich immer wieder und wieder...)

The free bus even came with a local tourist guide who announced the hotels as we reached them...unbelievable / Der gratis-Bus service hat auch eine lokale Touristen Führerin die Hotels angekündigt hat (unglaublich!)

We booked ourselves into a nice Ryokan (Yutoya Ryokan) where we as well pre-booked a traditional Kaiseki dinner (more about that later) and traditional Japanese breakfast. We arrived in Kinosaki after a 2h50m train ride (2 change of trains) at about 15.00.

At the station, we were picked up by the local village bus and droped off at our Ryokan. After a warm welcome and an upgrade to a more luxurious room (thanks to our 'honeymoon'-status - COOL!) we got changed into our Kimonos (no underwear or swim-short underneath) and ready to go and get wet! :) They even gave us some traditional wooden shoes or rather clogs!

The hotel staff was eager to explain to us how to properly dress for the Onsen / Die Hotelangestellten haben uns gezeigt, wie man sich richtig für die Onsen anzieht

Our Honeymoon Suite with a view of the Japanese garden (and separate powder room & bathroom, plus a room where you can heat your feet up while drinking tea).....got upgarded thanks to Honeymoon status! / Unser grosszügiger Raum....wir erhielten einen besseren Raum dank unseres Honeymoon Status

Afternoon tea and sweets were provided as well.....fancy! / Nachmittags-Tee und Süssigkeiten wurden ebenfalls serviert.....Edel!

Getting geared up.....first layer of the Yukata / Und dann haben wir uns parat gemacht....erste Schicht des Yukata

And since it was cold up here....second layer of the Yukata / Und weil es kalt war hier oben...die zweite Schicht Yukata

Would not be complete without the wooden shoes (clogs) / Wäre nicht komplett ohne die Holzschuhe

Walking around the village in the Kimono does not make us feel like awkward muppet-heads but was actually quite cool and you see lots of tourists walking around dressed up like this.

After some photo-shooting at the small river that runs through the village we targeted our first Onsen (Ichi no Yu Spa). As mentioned Japanese Onsen is a traditional thing to do - therefore men and women are strictly seperated.

May I introduce....Mishell the Japanese Babes / Darf ich vorstellen....Mishell das Japanische Schätzli

And Pasci in typical Japanese pose / Und Pasci in typisch Japanischer Manier

......soooooo inocent :) / ......sooooooo unschuldig :)

A first experience is always difficult... After the changing room you go equipped with just a little face towel to the room with the hot spring pool. There you will find some shower station each with a little plastic stool and plastic basin - so first step is washing yourself! You are not allowed in the pool without washing yourself first!

The first of seven Onsen (we managed to visit 4 of them!) / Das erste von sieben Onsen (wir haben vier von ihnen besucht)
Then after you are clean, you move on full of excitement to the hot spring pool. You really just want to jump in and take a dive....

BUT...this pool is fu**ing HOT!!! WOW.....unbelievable...it is literally nearly boiling! CRAZY....therefore the correct approach for people who are not used to this kind of hot water is to do it step by step.

First the toes, then legs and eventually you can sit in the bath with the entire body! But by then you will be so hot that you just want to run out again and take a cold shower! This procedure you repeat several times...

Ichi no Yu Spa has a outdoor 'cave' Onsen where one can imagine soaking in the hot spring whilst watching the snow fall....Inside - there was a larger bath with some jacuzzi jets (which Pasci missed out) due to intial nerves of being with other naked Japanese men....hehe..

We both came back out again happy about our first Onsen experience! At first it is seriously hot...but after some point one starts to enjoy it. Therefore we moved on and went to look for the next Onsen (Kou no Yu Spa). And this time we almost already got professional taking two soaks with cold showers in between! GREAT :)

WOW....first Onsen experiene was great...really enjoyed it! WOW...unsere erste Onsen Erfahrung war super....wir haben es sehr genossen!

Close up of our foot-equipment / Nahaufnahme unserer Fuss-Ausstattung
Kinosaki is a cute village with a small river flowing through / Kinosaki ist ein hübsches Dorf mit einem kleinen Fulss
The second Onsen of the day: Kou no yu Spa / Das zweite Onsen am heutigen Tag: Kou no yu Spa

The second Spa had a pretty little outdoor (round) hot pool - and in the women's section, it got rather sociable as Mishell ended up chatting to some Australian woman and was 15 mins late - Pasci was not impressed with having to wait for Mishell (again). Oops....

Gone is all the stress of discovering Japan of the past few days.... / Vergangen ist der Stress Japan zu erkundigen der vergangenen Tage

Coming out of the Onsen, we started to feel the relaxing effect of the hot waters....It really is a deep tissue relaxed feeling!

Then it was time to go back home to our Ryokan where the traditional Kaiseki dinner was expecting us. Kaiseki also refers to the collection of skills and techniques that allow the preparation of such meals, and are analogous to Western haute cuisine.

The dinner is comprissed of various small dishes cooked with lots of details and served in a particular order. It was a very interesting experience with some of the dishes being really delicious. With that we obiously had to enjoy some Japanese Sake! *Yummy* We also pre-ordered a portion of Japanese Wagyu (Tajima) beef ...we felt like Kings that evening! :)

On the way to dinner.... / Auf dem Weg zum Abendessen....

....which was served in our private room / ....welches in unserem privaten Raum serviert wurde

Appetizer: Steamed radish (daikon) in Ponzu sauce/ Apperetif: Gedämpftes Rettich in Ponzu sauce (soya sauce mit limetten)

First course: A selection of beautifully prepared bite-sized appetizers - Magnolia flower, marinated Octopus (sweet-ish), rice cake/dumplings (in the toothpick) and scallops in sweet soy sauce / Erster Gang: Eine Auswahl an wunderschön zubereiteten mundgerechten Aperetifen

Second course: Sashimi prawn, Squid & Scallop - beautifully presented / Zweiter Gang: Sashimi Garnele, St. Jacque & Calamari schön presentiert

Third course *Simmered meat*: Simmered chicken with vegetables and mushrooms served on a hot stones. We were only allowed to eat it once the candle has gone out. Perfectly timed dish! / Dritter Gang *Langsam gekochtes Fleisch*:

Fourth course: Japanese Clam (Hamaguri) clear soup. It is said that this soup symbolizes happy marriage / Vierter Gang: Japanische Muschel Suppe. Diese Suppe hat die Bedeutung für eine Glückliche Ehe

And then finally the candle was out and we could eat the simmered chicken - it was delicious / und dann endlich war die Kerze aus und wir konnten das Poulet essen - es war köstlich

Short break in between....enough time to take some pictures / Kurze Pause zwischendurch....genug Zeit um einige Photos zu machen

Fifth course *grilled*: Grilled local fish with chargrilled vegetable - we first thought that it is eggplant but it turned out to be some local vegetable / Fünfter Gang *grilliert*: Grillierter Fisch mit grilliertem Gemüse - wir dachten zuerst dass es sich um Aubergine handelt, es war jedoch ein lokales Gemüse

Cosmetic effects of the chargrilled vegetable.....OOooops! / Kosmetischer Effekt des grillierten Gemüse.....OOooopps!

Sixth course *Chawanmushi*: Japanese egg custard which is steamed in a cup flavored with fish stock. Miraculously escaped our camera! Sorry./ Sechster Gang *Chawanmushi*: Japanischer Ei Creme welche in einer Tasse gedämpft wird. Wie durch ein wunder kein Foto. Sorry.

Seventh course: Japanese Tajima Beef served on a hot stone / Siebeter Gang: Japanisches Tajima Rindfleisch serviert auf einem heissen Stein

Eight course: Rice and Miso Soup (no picture) / Achter Gang: Reis und Miso Suppe (kein Bild)

Dessert: Honey jelly in soyabean froth / Dessert: Honig Gelee in Soyabohnen Schaum

After an extensive dinner (but not heavy) we decided to go for another soak at another Onsen (Mandara Yu Spa). It was pretty cold - so it was perfect for a last hot soak to end the night. With our 3 layers of Kimono - we felt pretty warm and toasty inside....

It was a very quaint feeling, tottering to the Spa in our clogs and then afterwards, coming out feeling all relaxed and jelly-like...wearing nothing underneath except for our layers of Kimono - an experience in itself indeed!

After this last soak we walked home to our Ryokan grabbing a dessert at an ice-cream stall.

Kinosaki by night.... / Kinosaki in der Nacht....

Mandara Yu Spa: This Onsen we enjoyed the least because it was most basic (no real outdoor pool but a big wooden Japanese Round Bathtub where you soak yourself up to your neck). The view would have been beautiful in Winter - with the snow on the terrace..../ Mandara Yu Spa: Dieses Onsen haben wir am wenigsten genossen, da es keinen Aussen Pool hatte

Many ice-cream flavors to choose from..Black sesame, green tea, cheesecake, peach, strawberry....etc etc/ Viele Glace-Sorten zu Auswählen...Sesam, grüntee, Käse, Erdbeer etc...

Pasci and his two new friends decided for Cheescake flavour *yummy* / Pasci und seine zwei neuen Freunde entschieden sich für Cheescake Geschmack *yummy*

To give you an insight we managed to take a picture of the Onsen at our Ryokan. This is the area where you are supposed to wash yourself before you move on to the hot pool... / Um Euch einen Einblick in die Welt der Onsen zu geben haben wir ein Foto gemacht von dem Onsen in unserer Ryokan. Das ist der Berich in dem man sich waschen muss, bevor man in den heissen Pool geht.

Only then you are allowed to move on into the pool. Japanese are very much used to the temperature of the hot spring. Westerners not so much.....therefore go in slowly! / Nur dann ist man erlaubt in den heissen Pool zu gehen. Japaner sind sich die heisse Temeperatur gewöhnt. Westler nicht so sehr....darum, langsam machen!

When we came back from the Onsen our bed was ready....traditionally Japanese sleeping of the floor / Als wir von dem Onsen zurück kamen war unser Bett gemacht....traditionell in Japan schlafen wir auf dem Boden
Before falling asleep we enjoyed another two series of Desperate Housewives....We eventually passed out and fell into a deep sleep :)

The morning came all too soon and it was time (8.30) to get up and enjoy the traditional Japanese breakfast! Pasci especially loved the dried fish for breakfast (*blearch* - hehe..) - it was a good and light breakfast rounding up our experience of traditional Japanese lifestyle!

You can guess...after breakfast we took the chance and went to try yet another Onsen (Gosho no Yu Spa) before heading back to busy Tokyo. Gosho no Yu Spa was definitely the highlight of all the Onsen we have seen with a beautiful outside pool that has a view on a waterfall just at the back of the pool. After a quick soak there it was time to head back to Tokyo.

Still with small eyes early (08.45) in the morning....hehe.... / Immernoch mit kleinen Augen früh (08.45) am Morgen....heheh.....

Traditional japanese breakfast.... Pasci especially loved the dried fish (*blearch*)! / Traditionelles Japanisches Frühstück....Pasci mochte vor allem den getrockneten Fisch (*würg*)!

Gosho no Yu Spa was a real highlight! In the outdoor pool you have a view on a waterfall pouring down....very relaxing! / Gosho no Yu Spa war ein wirkliches Highlight! Im Aussen-Pool hat man eine Aussicht auf einen Wasserfall der herunter plätschert..... sehr entspannend!

After our last soak and getting changed back in our Ryokan we walked towards the station of Kinosaki Onsen. On the way there we managed to get some pictures of Japanese products in the various shops along the street...

First we discovered the origin of the dried fish that we had for breakfast / Zuerst haben wir die Herkunft des getrockneten Fischs (welchen wir zum Frühstück hatten) entdeckt

We also noted how they dry the fish, i.e. using a fan! / Wir haben auch bemerkt wie Sie die Fische trocknen - mit einen Ventilator!

Beautiful Japanese scarves / Wunderschöne Seiden Halstücher

Kinosaki Onsen is close to the sea...therefore crab is a speciality! / Kinosaki Onsen ist nahe am Meer...daher ist Krebs eine Spezialität!

Some dried, spicy Japanse crab snacks / Getrocknete, scharfe Japanische Krebs-Snacks

Tajima beef Spaghetti Bolognaise....For those who can afford it! / Tajima Rindfleisch Spaghetti Bolognaise...Für die, die es sich leisten können!

Another Japanese speciality....Tree-cake! Unfortunatelly we did not manage to try it. / Eine weitere Japanische Spezialiät....Baum-Kuchen! Leider hatten wir keine Gelegenheit es zu versuchen.

Some more Japanese sweets.... / Und noch mehr Japanische Süssigkeiten....
Lots of Crab produce - we didnt really know what was for what..but this town is full of Crab-produce! / Viele Krebs-produkte. Wir wussten nicht was ist für was...

The small river running through Kinosaki....There were fish in it! / Der kleine Fluss welcher durch Kinosaki fliesst....Es hatte Fische darin!

Dried fish in all variations...... / Getrockneter Fisch in allen Variationen.....

Downtown Kinosaki.....a small & beautiful place! / Mitten im Zentrum von Kinosaki....ein kleiner & wunderschöner Ort!

We took the train at around lunch time to Tokyo - the journey took us about 6 hours....but we were ALL relaxed! It was truly amazing......despite the long and tiring train journey.

We got onto a really nice and luxurious Shinkansen only to realise that apparently our Japan Rail Pass limits us to cheap Shinkansens only. Although we had to get off and on again at the next station - queue up etc etc, we had this calm, inner Zen feeling and felt all relaxed....must have been the magic of the spring water making the CHF550 p/night (!!) experience totally worth it!

*bye-bye*

Although our stay was short.....we enjoyed it a lot and felt very relaxed and ready for Tokyo! / Obwohl wir nur kurz da waren....haben wir es sehr genossen und fühlten uns sehr entspannt und bereit für Tokyo!

Feeling a little poor but relaxed - next stop: our last night in Tokyo!