Japanese Onsen (All you really need to know).

Okay. Some things I forgot to mention in the last entry. My beloved Fender Strat has given up the ghost. I plugged her in to play some music the other day, only to find she isn't making any noise at present. Sad. I know it's a problem with the toggle, because I was using a rubber band on it to keep it functioning before. Now, even a rubber band won't help her. (Plus I broke the rubber band trying to get her to work .. .Double disaster!) Well, I am also pretty happy with the operation on my nose (in case I didn't mention it before). The thing is relatively clear now that all the swelling has gone down, and for the first time in years, I've been able to breath without it being a big effort on behalf of my lungs, diaphragm, or nostrils. I went to one of my old favourite Japanese sites, which I haven't frequented in about a year, only to find I have to sign in now. So, it's another FREE membership thing and another password to remember. (Well, same one I use for most things!) First thing which pops up, is another article for an Onsen. (Those not familiar with Japanese, an Onsen is a hot spring, where you can go and it supposedly has therapeutic benefits). I'm not against Onsen at all, (knowing someone who works as a waitress in an Onsen), but I really get tired of the amount of advertising I see regarding them. Maybe I just spend too much time perusing through Japanese Newspapers, Magazines and other writings, but I am getting to Onsen saturation point. With the amount of times I have seen them mentioned, you would think that the only thing which exists in Japan are these volcanically heated springs. (Yes, I can see the irony in the fact that I am adding to the amount of times they are mentioned!) Anyhow, I decided to ignore the article in the magazine, because I can't see how they can write much more about these things. For anyone who really needs to know about them, I will provide a quick summary, so you may never have to read an article about them ever again, and hopefully the articles and advertising will be reduced a bit, to a low murmur just to remind people every now and then that it might be an interesting place to visit. ONSEN SUMMARY: 1. Onsen are geothermally heated springs in Japan. 2. They are considered to cure all sorts of ailments, or just be therapeutic in general. (Check with an Onsen you are going to visit to see if it claims to cure anything). 3. You can go to hotels in Japan that have Onsen water on tap (for your bath. There was a recent fracas in previous years where some hotels were just heating tap water and colouring it milky white to save money). 4. You may end up sharing an Onsen with a monkey. That is, if you go to one in the areas where the Monkeys enjoy a good Onsen dip as much as the rest of us primates. (Not all Onsen have this happen, so check for an Onsen which either HAS or DOESN'T HAVE monkeys that do). 5. After talking to my Japanese friends I discovered you cannot share your Onsen with someone, unless you are a couple. I always imagined people would go to these and just sit around in their bathers and have a bit of a social gathering. Apparently it isn't so. You get an Onsen all to yourself, which is partitioned off from everyone else, and you apparently get into it naked! Like it is a bath. You now have pretty much all the knowledge any advert or article concerning Onsen are likely to give you, (with the exception of the address of where to go); plus a bit extra I read about in Japanese newspapers and some things my Japanese friends told me.