To be in hot water

for people who are dead in the water

There are many Onsenhotels all over in Japan. So why would anybody take the effort to go to an Onsen located at 5900 feet altitude in the middle of the mountains? Well, there may be many Onsens in Japan but not many with real volcanic sulphur water with a high and healthy iron and minerals content. In most regions of Japan the sulphur water tends to have a green touch. However here in the Manza region the water is opaque which is kind of special and appreciated by the Japanese people. The little Tsumagoi-Mura (Mura means village) has been known for its healing springs for a long time. In the 1920′s people made pilgrimages to this place to ease their suffering. And even today it seems to enjoy a very good reputation beyond the borders of Japan. In contrast to many other onsens, Manza does not need a pipeline to reach the hot water as it is located only about 130 feet below the ground. Even the Japanese Emperor Akihito is a regular guest here. The hotel owner already got to know him at university when Akihito was a young man.

It's Japanese culture to have onsen baths only naked.

So it is a very renowned hotel. I can certainly confirm that. This week we have guests from New York, the Netherlands and even one from Germany. As I’m clearing the table the guest from the Netherlands asks me: “Where are you from?”… “Ah, Germany, I’m from Amsterdam but I work in Zurich.
“Really? I had a show about a bicycle trip I did from Hamburg to Rome there. Do you know the cafe ‘Dini Mueter’?, is my reply.
“Sure, I’m there quite often!”

Well, yes. Sometimes the world is smaller than you think. So much about the hotel and the environment I’m working in. Next weeks I will present as yet unpublished photos from Tokyo and the blog will receive general updates. And there will be another surprise.

Special thanks to: Hubertus Neidhart from Webspace Provider Network for excellent web page hosting services; Kimberley Wright, UK (proofreading); Lilith Pendzich;