Onsen Adventure

"We need another memory card," Bill said to Laura. It was their first trip to Japan and they were in danger of having no more memories available. Laura had proclaimed if they didn't have a picture of it, it didn't happen. Bill had taken nonstop shots in an effort to please his wife.

"Okay, we can go to one of those six-floor stores all over the place," Laura said.

"I think Mt. Fuji is different than Osaka or Tokyo. It's a resort town and smaller. I don't know how easy it will be to buy something there," Bill replied.

"If it's a resort town, they'll have camera equipment."

"I think we can scroll through and delete the bad shots but I'm just going to let you bask in your logical genius. Just don't get any of that oozing pride on me," Bill said with a grin.

They arrived at an inn featuring a public bathing area called an onsen. Laura read about them during the vacation-planning period and an onsen was one of her absolute must-do activities. She learned about them and thought the idea was wonderful. She was a sucker for bathtubs as it was.

"So, it's a public bathhouse. You go in, shower and get clean and eventually get into the pool. Everyone is already scrubbed and clean so they don't dirty up the water. Oooh, and it's a thermal hot spring from Mt. Fuji itself.... Herself? Whichever. They have hot and extra-hot pools in some places. Oh, sad, ours doesn't. But still, isn't that fun?"

Bill smiled as she kept talking. He liked his wife excited about their trip. They had been working on it for months. Now all they had to do was learn how to act locally so they didn't offend anyone by being rude Americans. They learned quickly and found everyone willing to teach and forgive their mistakes.

They arrived at the inn in early afternoon. The woman at the front desk spoke excellent English and directed them to their rooms. Bill and Laura learned to don their robes earlier and were quickly settled.

"I'm going to check out the napping capabilities of the tatami mats," Bill said. He rolled over and was snoring within 30 seconds. Laura sighed and walked out of the room. It was November and the windows were open in the hallway. A beautiful clear night shone through and brisk, cold air poured through the inn.

A sign in front of the ladies' onsen showed a big hand stopping Laura from entering. She panicked, calmed down, and strode to the front desk.

"Good evening," she said to the young woman at the front desk, "I have a question about the women's onsen."

The woman struggled with her words and Laura patiently waited. The woman's written command of English was slightly better than her verbal skills and she wrote down some words that didn't translate well.

Laura sighed. The woman's onsen was closed for the night. Whatever the problem was, it was enough that no one could go in the area. Disappointment flooded her face. The receptionist apologized and invited her to try again in the morning.

"We go United States in morning. No Japan."

The girl shook her head, saddened Laura couldn't try onsen. It was the one thing she wanted and she was surprised at the empathy from the receptionist. Laura perked up, an idea in her head.

"Onsen are man and woman in Tokyo, hai? I go man onsen?"

The girl thought a second, understanding spreading across her face. She frowned.

Laura learned co-ed onsens were not forbidden or taboo. She used gestures, patience, and creative vocabulary to learn that another woman did not enjoy her soak and the men in the onsen were very rude to her. The other women chose not to try after hearing the story of the first one. No one was touched and nothing terrible happened but the receptionist kept using the word rude to describe the men.

Laura was torn. She wanted to do this so badly. She had experienced a few topless and nude beaches before. She wasn't afraid of her body or especially shy but she didn't know the culture. She felt like an outsider and didn't want to seem stupid or be embarrassed.

Still, she wouldn't have this opportunity for a long time.

"Arigato gozaimus!" she said, bowing to the receptionist. She was bid thank you and good evening back. She turned and headed to the room.

And turned left to the small alcove of the men's onsen.

She breezed through the doorway into the small front room. There were four sinks and small baskets on various shelves around the room. She took her sandals off and put them underneath her basket. A man walked into the room from the pool as she started to pull the belt off her robe. He had a small washcloth on his head and he was naked. She froze, confidence draining out of her. He walked to his basket and took the washcloth off his head. He saw her and his eyes went wide.

"Hoi!" he said, shocked. His hands went to cover his crotch. He looked completely confused and looked around, eyes still wide.

She greeted him good evening in Japanese and turned back to her basket. She pulled the belt off her robe.

"Here goes nothing," she said aloud.

She pulled her robe off and time slowed down. The scratchy material came off her shoulders and exposed her lean, tanned back. Cold air tickled her front and curled between her legs and around her body. The robe slid down her skin, over her hips, past her knees, and to the floor. She knelt to pick it up, fold it, and put in her basket. Towels were not allowed into the pool area and she was armed with her washcloth. She felt it ridiculous to try to cover up. She turned, holding her washcloth with her arms at her sides. The man's eyes were wide, glued on her. She took a breath and walked past him, towards the steam of the heated water and the trickling sounds of the pool.

Steam fogged the room. Cold air from the large open windows combated the humid air from the showers and the hot spring. Showerheads and buckets lined two walls and the large pool took up most of the floor space. It was lined with rocks spread out for decoration. Water streamed down one larger rock as a miniature waterfall. There was a sharp tang of sulfur in the air. There were five men washing and cleansing and a half-dozen more in the large spring. Quiet conversations slowed and stopped and all eyes were on Laura.

Laura summoned her courage and walked to the nearest showerhead and sat down. She faced the wall, away from everyone, and warmed herself up with hot water. She felt much more exposed than she expected. She kept her arms close to her sides and her knees pressed together. She shampooed, rinsed, and washed her body as best she could without too much showing. She stood and walked rapidly to the water. Every man had his eyes on her. She felt their gazes crawling on her body, on her breasts, her stomach, between her legs, everywhere. She slipped into the water at the far end of the pool and tried to take up as little space as possible. Hopefully the spring water would conceal her some.

Laura was wrong. She expected the water, smelling so strongly of sulfur, to be cloudy or bubbly. It was crystal clear. She was easy to see. She sat with her legs crossed and her arms crossed over her breasts. She tried to not show anything and she settled into the water attempting to relax.

She opened her eyes at the sound of nearby splashing and water moving around. Three men, younger, early 20s, maybe, had seated themselves in a group next to her. All three were facing her. They were talking to each other but kept glancing and looking at her body. Laura didn't expect them to be so aggressive. The other men were peeking but they weren't so obvious.

Rude indeed.

For fifteen minutes, Laura shifted on the ledge and tried to find a more comfortable position. Covering herself was hard work and frustrating. No wonder no other women wanted in here. If it weren't for these three clowns this wouldn't be so bad. She finally gave up.

"Okay, if you jackoffs want to stare, stare. Jesus," she said to them in English. Two older men snorted in laughter from the other side of the pool but the three men looked at her questioningly.

She stopped giving a fuck about hiding. They would look anyway. They all saw her anyway. Whatever. She stretched out, uncrossing her legs. She unfolded her arms and rested them on the sides of the pool wall. The three young men stopped pretending and openly stared at her. She closed her eyes and pretended she was alone. Her eyes opened seconds later at the sound of splashing near her. One of the guys had climbed up on the side of the pool and sat barely three feet away. His legs were spread wide open and his dick was at eye level. He was staring at her tits from his vantage point. Laura suddenly worried about any problems. She thought about leaving immediately.

Someone ejected loud, guttural Japanese in a deep voice. Half the men in the room jumped. The three guys were looking shocked and embarrassed. An older man, late 50s, was standing, pointing a finger at them. They didn't look at him. He yelled a few more sentences and even Laura got the point. He thundered more at them and they looked downright mortified. They climbed out of the pool and walked toward the changing area. Laura would have been afraid to have him yell at her. He stood there, water up to his mid-thighs, glare plastered on his face, staring at the guys until they were out the door. His gaze focused back on Laura.

"Moushiwake arimasen deshita," he said very politely and gave half a bow. He sat back down, his stare challenging anyone else. The other men had been respectful to start and gave no argument.

Twenty minutes of quiet ran by. Laura luxuriated in the warm water. She felt herself calm and relax. She grew accustomed to her nudity in a room full of strangers. A few more men entered the pool and looked at her. She could tell everyone was glanced at her body but they were being discreet. She appreciated the attention.

She had seen several men get up from the pool and head to the shower stalls against the wall. She wasn't sure why, thinking they were maybe showing off to her. She started to get overheated. She figured they were cooling themselves off and getting back into the water. That seemed easy enough.

Laura climbed out of the water. Eyes tracked her hips and ass as she strolled across the deck to the showers. She sat and sprayed herself down with cold water. She felt her nipples pucker and her body shiver under the stream. She glanced down. Yup, her nips were sticking out. She cooled her body, rinsing, and stood up again. She would warm up first and leave to see what Bill was doing.

Being in the water was different than standing up. The pool suddenly seemed a mile away. She felt comfortable in the water but this was a bit different. She tried not to stare at the faces turned up towards her. Her chest, her pussy, her whole body was completely exposed to all these strangers. Her tits weren't large but they jiggled and bounced as she walked faster to get into the water. One man was next to the small stairs and he stared up between her legs and she climbed down. Laura immediately sunk to her neck in water and moved to her spot.

"I'm in a pool full of naked men," she thought to herself. She really tried to not pay attention but she couldn't think of anything but it. She watched a man rinse and walk to the pool, his dick mostly concealed by soft, black hair. Another man was sitting next to her, his head back, his towel on his face. His dick seemed to float in the water. Laura continually saw men glance at her. She wasn't sure how she felt. What would Bill say?

Oh, god, what if Bill came in?

Laura stood up, water streaming down her body. She climbed out of the pool and walked quickly toward the changing room. As soon as she was through the door she heard the room explode in excited, rapid Japanese. Everyone was talking at once. She barely dried herself and climbed into her robe. She put her sandals on and headed towards the door. She almost ran over an older Japanese man in her haste. He looked at her, panic in his eyes. He said something in Japanese.

"I don't know what you said but you are in the men's room," she said.

He looked at her, shaking his head. He snuck a look into the pool area and looked back at her. Comprehension filled his face. He smiled broadly. Then he frowned, heavily saddened. He gestured to her body under her robe and made a "Damn, I missed it, how unlucky" gesture.

Laura made a decision. Other men had already seen her and she hadn't tied her belt up. What's one more guy? It would make his day.

She held her robe open, flashing him her body. He looked at her. His eyes slide down her skin and a smile exploded on his face. She let him look a few seconds and turned and left. His thank-yous followed her out the room.

Bill was asleep. She curled up next to him. She had a blast at the onsen and appreciated the kind help of the man. It made her experience worth it. She nodded off debating telling Bill the next morning.

Breakfast was served in the main room the next day. Several men gave Laura a polite good morning as they passed her table. She nodded and smiled back.

"They know you or something?" Bill asked.

"They just probably saw me around yesterday," Laura said.