'Absorbing' the culture

Thursday was the day I've been waiting for. A group of Rotarians took us to a Japanese spa. Its a huge building with several attractions. There is a large pool with rounded blocks that form a maze. The current flows a certain way, and you jog with it. It was cute to watch the elderly Japanese women, bobbing up and down, swim caps on their heads. There are little "rest stops" along the way, where you can back up to jets or relax in a hot tub.

All the water is from the ocean, which is supposed to be good for you, but I didn't catch why.

One room is like a cold steam room. You lay on lawn chairs while sea mist floats in around you. We also tried lying in a bathtub with jets that move around to different parts of your body.

The grand finale was getting a mud pack. A cute Japanese woman smeared my back with thick mud paste, as I laid one a table. She wrapped me in thin plastic, then with a thicker padded plastic comforter. There was heat that radiated through the table. The mud is supposed to help with aches and pains. There was also a choice of a seaweed paste, which is supposed to make your skin soft.

We spent three hours at the spa, and after a lunch of rice, eggs and seafood mixed together, we were all ready to take a nap.

Instead we visited a ranger station, went to a vegetable and fish market, went to a park visitors center, and went to coffee twice. I told you, they pack it in. At the same time, I was constantly consulting our translator, Shuski, on how to say certain sentences in Japanese.

It was a great day. Now I'm back with my host family (The photo is of my room here). We ate sushi with more intriguing seafood and watched sumo wrestling. I couldn't help but laugh a couple times at these big fat guys in little diapers going around slapping their belts.


Tonight was a little easier, and I really tried to use more Japanese. I showed the Web site of the newspaper I work for. At one point, my host mom, Atsuko, pointed at the legal notices and asked what they were. She and Tetsuo were fascinated. Try explaining in Japanese why the government has to auction off a house when it's in foreclosure. I managed though, and it's always rewarding when the light goes on on the other end — signaling success.

Lesson learned: Sea urchin isn't half bad. It's sea cucumber I can't stomach.