arima onsen

is one of the oldest onsen places in japan, and is the most famous one near osaka that i know of. it’s most convenient to get to via coach buses – from the hankyu bus station in umeda, you’ll reach in just an hour; far better a trip than taking the hanshin railway and changing to yet another train line.

we went there in early december, too late for the best of the autumn leaves, but early enough that the weather is still beautiful.

heading there, we definitely felt a bit out of place, as most of the other passengers were old people, with the rest being middle-aged. i think we were the only two who were in our twenties..

its famous gin no yu public bath:

 

its water tasted terrible though…

check out the other steaming hot springs:

accompanied with a stern warning:

arima is very small, and its age is visible in quite a lot of its buildings

 

even the exterior of our hotel was really drab:

our room was gorgeous though. it had a spacious entrance way, a front porch with the toilet AND bathroom and wash area attached, a main room of about 10-12 tatami mats and a smaller bedroom about 4-tatami mats in size, as well as another area with 4 arm chairs and a small coffee table.

the onsen in the hotel itself was so-so. it wasnt big at all, which means that one can only imagine how crowded it could be on long weekends. dinner was awesome though – everyone should definitely have a traditional kaiseki dinner while in japan. it’s meant to have 12 courses, and this is only half of it:

amongst the dishes were beef sukiyaki, chawanmushi, tempura, sashimi, grilled scallop, crabs legs, an udon dish, a mixed starter, some vegetable stuff, steamed chicken and broiled fish. i somehow forgot my chawanmushi – there were too many dishes on the table – and i regret that still!

i think the most interesting in arima is the toys and automata museum though – foreigners receive a discount!

the museum contains traditional miniature toys from Germany, modern toys, wind-up dolls and others.

most of the german toys were christmas related:

this is how multiple wood-cut animals are made:

note the tiny carved figurines in walnut shells at the bottom right:

 

there were many such christmas decorations, but this was the biggest and the most beautiful:

on another floor were these wind up toys. push a button and they move:

 

 

note the eyes on the horse on this one:

 

the creator of the above has an obsession with anubis:

besides these, arima has nothing much really. it’s nice for a weekend getaway from osaka – especially since it’s so near – but it wouldnt be a must-go.