ONSEN ORIENTATION

We have escaped the crowds and muggy weather of Tokyo. Here in Hokkaido, we are 15 or so degrees fahrenheit cooler and a world away in a spa hotel in Shiretoko National Park, one of the wildest and most pristine areas of northeastern Japan.

Our hotel is a large destination hotel for Japanese, Koreans and Chinese families; Ron and I are the only Westerners I have seen so far. Sawako has booked us in a traditional Japanese room, which consists of an entry foyer with a shelf full of slippers that gives way to a raised platform with 10 rectangular tatami mats and a large low table with two chairs. Tonight, our room will become our bedoom when they lay out the foutons, comforters and surprisingly comfortable pillows filled with hulls from a seed whose name escapes me. Here we had our first chance to also enjoy a favorite Japanese tradition: the onsen, or hot spring bath.

Like most group activities here in Japan, there are rules about how to enjoy this timeless ritual appropriately from start to finish. It's not a simple dip in the pool. Ron was on his own as the men`s and women`s baths were separate. I was lucky to have Sawako to guide me through every step. The good part is that no one is really paying attention to you; that Japanese quality of sticking to your own space is helpful here as I peek around me to make sure I'm doing things right.

We begin by changing into a specialized robe, or yukata, that is in every hotel room, and, for modesty's sake, we cover up with a short jacket made of embroidered flannel or a similar material. Everyone walks around the public spaces wearing this uniform. And here is where Ron and I had to quickly rewind as Sawako arrived in our room to take us to the baths. Ron's robe reached slightly below his knees, and mine was dragging on the floor. No problem, there is a drawerful of robes in various sizes. And our second oops of the evening: no wearing of slippers on the tatami mat.

So we arrive at the bath, slip off your slippers, deposit our belongings in a basket and find a personal washing station where, for about 15 minutes, we super-scrub ourselves until we are squeaky clean, including washing our hair and using an exfoliant to rub off dead skin. All this while sitting on a small plastic stool and maneuvering a bowl and handheld shower. We wrap our long thin towel around our wet heads and head for the bath. In Ron's version, the small towel simply sits atop his head. But nothing but your naked body must come into contact with the pool water.

This particular onsen had indoor and outdoor pools, so we opted for our bath under the stars, with the ocean not far away. I was surprised to find that the temperature was quite bearable, as I had read they could get as hot as 110 or higher fahrenheit. I then realized that the further away from the beautiful waterfall that is at one corner of the pool, the cooler the water.

After you have had enough of the bath, you don your robe again and can either lounge around the hotel as is or change before dinner. We did as most of the other guests did, and stayed in our yakatas to enjoy our buffet dinner. The baths are open from 3pm until 9 am the following morning, so at 6 am the next morning, I ventured by myself, more confident now that the mystery of the onsen had been revealed.