Not Your Usual Kind of Ryokan- やすらぎの里(高原館)

For all health conscious ladies (and gentlemen), you may wish to embark on a different travel route in Japan. Different from the usual ryokan which offers onsen, good food (and huge quantity) and a huge stylish/ 和風 room. This ryokan is for health buffs who came for the common purpose: to be healthier or slimmer.

I've always wanted to give such ryokans a try after I read about it from Twitter and Naoko Takagi 高木直子's manga (or picture book?), I decided to plan a trip there. I chose やすらぎの里 (高原館), as recommended by Takagi sensei. There are 3 branches in all.

So what's different?

Room
Unlike the usual hotel room or ryokan room, my room for one is actually more like my bedroom in my Japanese home. It is furnished like a regular Japanese room, and comes with a balcony and genkan. I could actually hang my clothes up to dry in the balcony.

TIP
There are two washing machines provided, so you can do all your washing over there at no additional costs. Drying costs ¥50 per round though. But then since I could dry them under the sun so I didn't use the drying machine at all.

At first there was some issues with the payment as guests have to make payment before the stay, probably because it was really popular and the stay isn't cheap. (Costs about ¥64000 for my 3-night stay, single room, detox course) But in the end as we were unable to resolve the overseas bank transfer issue, they allowed me to make payment upon checkout instead.

Classes
Unlike normal ryokans which provide accommodation, onsen and gorgeous food, this alternative ryokan (some call it a 断食道場 which literally means a training camp for fasting) provides various classes. We follow a schedule, rather strictly, as you probably already know Japanese are very punctual. There are about 2 exercise classes, both before meals. We have yoga classes (yoga mats are provided) and simple workouts outdoors. We also have interesting workshops like "How to do lymphatic massage", "How to eat properly" and meditation classes. The owner also came to give a talk on how to maintain a healthy lifestyle. His tip? We do not need to make a big change in our lifestyle,as these big changes are usually not sustainable. We just need to make bite-sized changes to our lifestyle and slowly we can see a change.





Relaxation
I think my metal health was at its peak at やすらぎの里. I woke up naturally to the chirping of birds or rays of gentle sunlight. I could do my morning reading or squirrel-watching in the small garden right in front of my room. This is what city life can't offer.

In addition, they have a hot stone sauna room for three, one indoor onsen pool, one outdoor onsen pool, lots of reading material (in Japanese though), 2 foot baths (different aromas every day) and massage chairs for our usage.

Alternatively you can just watch TV in your own room too. The TV size is quite big. :p

For those willing to pay more, there's a massage chair in some single rooms.





Food
If I can only share about the one thing that has changed for me, that would be learning to appreciate food. I eat slower now. Colleagues would know that I often gobble up my food in order to buy time to do work. Lunch time at work can be as short as 15 minutes, including queuing and buying of food.

Food seems to be so exceptionally delicious here. Especially their salads! I took down some of their recipes, and hope to replicate them at home. :) Mmm but to be truthful, I am unsure if it was because we follow a strict diet regime, so when it was meal time we were actually pretty hungry and food just tastes exceptionally well even though they are the healthier options. You know, less oil, less salt, less sugar. When I finally had fish on my last breakfast there, it tasted so good, I can almost gobble down the bones. LOL.

But then we have to give them credit, as all the sauces are prepared by the crew. They didn't use the usual prepackaged stuff. So that is perhaps the secret to mouth-drooling healthy food.

The volume and variety of food increases with time. I started with just salad and soup. Here are some photos of my detox course (the ones with more volume and variety).





Sight-seeing
We are free to leave the ryokan and classes are not compulsory too, so we went exploring in the afternoons. The staff recommends walks around the area (immerse yourself in nature, flower viewing etc), a trip to Akazawa spa, mountain hiking at the nearby hill 大室山, leisure walk around the lake etc. I went to visit the 大室山 and 赤沢日帰り温泉館. The nearest bus stop is about 10-15 minutes walk away. You can take the bus from 伊豆高原 station bus stop 1 too.




Crater on top of the hill. You can even try archery in the crater.

TIP
It can get rather cold on the hill. The wind is strong too. Remember to bring a cardigan with you.

If you're a onsen lover like me, then you have to visit 赤沢日帰り温泉館. Gosh, the view is awesome! Imagine an infinity onsen pool that overlooks the sea and mountains. The huge indoor pool, rotenburo (outdoor pool) and even sauna room all have access to that view. Isn't that awesome? If that's not enough to tempt you, they are well-stocked with DHC products, and there are 2 special DHC enhanced onsen tubs.

TIP
There's a free shuttle bus from 伊豆高原 station at the Yamamo Exit. Look out for a small blue bus. They also provide free return trips to the station.

TIP
They have a shuttle bus service to fetch us from the station at 13.10 every Friday (the day we check-in) to the ryokan. There will buses that fetch us from the ryokan to the station at 10.40am every day during our stay there too. However they do not have daily shuttle service from station to ryokan, so make use of the local bus instead.

In December 2017, I was back for a second visit. And this time i covered two new places. Here's how's you can get there:

Izu Teddy Bear Museum


This small quaint museum is famous for the Totoro exhibition. First storey showcases the teddy bear collection, while the second storey houses the Totoro exhibition. It is now into Part 2 of the exhibition phase. It's very family friendly. When I visited, there were several other Japanese families with young children's (read: toddlers). Hence if you would like more time to take photographs with Totoro and friends, I would recommend that you go on a weekday instead.


This is an actual "bus" you can take pictures inside it!







Ticket price
The ticket costs 1080yen, but you can get a 100yen discount when you pre-purchase the tickets at the vending machine at the 伊豆高原 Izukougen train station. That particular vending machine also sells discounted tickets for other tourist attractions. Do check this out before you proceed with sightseeing.



How to get there
It's within walking distance from the train station. There are some slopes, so a stroll to the museum will take about 20 minutes.
Official website on how to get there.

海洋公园
When you are in Izu, you have to see the Izu shoreline. I wanted to see the sea so much, that I waited an hour for the bus. Take the bus from bus stand 2 at the Izukougen train station bus stop. The bus only comes every hour though, so do take note of the timing. The ride is about 10 minutes. Do watch out for the LCD screen in the bus. The bus stop you are alighting at is 海洋公园. This is the same bus stop that you alight if you intend to hike to the Jogasaki Cliff.

I really love the view of the sea here. I could sit here all day and watch the waves crash upon the rocks, the seagulls circling the sea...





Results
That's probably what you have been waiting for, so was there any improvement after my 4-day-3-night detox trip? Well I definitely feel better. It was pretty stress-free over there, and everyone was friendly and nice. I lost about 1.5kg, and my body fats went down by a grade. And my body age went down by 1 year old too.

If you're adventurous and would like a different kind of stay, you can consider this course. I really enjoyed my time there, and would love to go back again, some time in future :)

Mmm but there's a prerequisite though, you would need to know Japanese to fully enjoy your stay there, since there's no one who is conversant in English over there. Ganbatte ne!

Let's Go for a Marathon in Winter!

Maybe it's bias from a tropical gal, but I always wonder why they schedule the annual marathons in winter. Why not in autumn? The weather is just nice.

And I went for my first marathon in winter. Umm.. not exactly... I didn't run, but walk though.. :P

My school had their marathon this Tuesday. Lucky for us, the weather had became warmer then. It was hovering around maximum of 12°C, a jump from the usual single digit. By the way, temperatures have dropped to single digits again starting from today though.

Our marathon was held in a huge park. The Japanese called it a park. I call it a nature reserve! It is many times the size of our Bt Timah Nature Reserve, and they looked pretty similar.



And another lucky arrangement- or lack-of, they did not have any duties for me, so I am free to tag along someone, roam around or join the race. I, of course, picked roaming around.

The boys ran a 10km course. The girls ran a 6km course. Much shorter, yes, but tough still, as their 6km course is filled with rocky slopes.

Me? I picked a 4km course to walk. It is a subset of the girls' course.

I had a wonderful morning walk. :D Enjoying the scenery and fresh air, and taking pictures along the way.



Too slow though, as by the time I return to the starting point, the girls had finished theirs, and the boys had started theirs.



The boys were so fast! They finished 10km in 30min?! If I were to run the same course, I would take 3 hours. (>_<)

And what's better than a hot bowl of tonshiru トン汁 to end the marathon race? The PTA prepared the pork miso soup. Servings were huge (free flow!).



It's pretty different from our marathons, right? Mmm.. I do miss ice milo after marathons though. :P

Mmm... I should really try going for a jog before the winter ends.... *Jots down on my to-do-list*

Beyond Nino's Tears in "Freeter"

In the latest Japanese drama which Nino-kun (whom I affectionately refer him to. :P actual name: 二宮和也 Ninomiya Kazunari), フリーター、家を買う, Nino acts as Seiji,a freeter, a young graduate who could not hold a full-time job and kept changing his part-time jobs, while he continued his search for jobs. But from the second episode onwards, a change is seen in his character. He started to stay in his construction part-time job, and searches for jobs more seriously, as his mother is diagnosed with depression.

Due to jealousy, the neighbours had been bullying the mother for 10 years, and all the while she suffered in silence. Finally depression set in when the situation at home got worse: Seiji is unable to find a full-time job and his dad is very disappointed in him. Eventually all three are unable to eat at the same table.

Finally after finding out the main reason for her depression woes, Seiji and his sister would like to move, but his dad refused, as he refused to give up the low rent of his current house, provided by his company. Actually, his dad had not been truthful. He would rather spend money on his mistress than on his wife. But that's another tale to tell.

And so, the scene is set, just like what the title of the drama reads, Seiji decided that he will buy a house for his family, since his dad won't. But it will not be easy for a freeter like him.

In last night's episode- Episode 4, it was especially sad, to see Seiji cry. As the sole caregiver for his mother, he had been burning two ends of the candle: working hard on the construction site, look for jobs, go for interviews, ensure his mum is taking medicine on time, bring her for checkups, etc; all the time, his dad just kept flooding him with negative comments: you will never be able to buy the house; your mother is just weak, etc. But ironically, it was the dad who caused all these troubles. His slip of tongue has given the neighbour a reason to bully the gentle mother.

The breakdown by Seiji, shows how important it is to support caregivers. For them, it is like an onset of troubles. Troubles just keep coming, but life still goes on. If they also give up, what happens to their loved ones who depended on them?

Mmm... I think HPB can consider using/ adapting this drama serial for their mental wellness campaign. All the touchpoints are covered: depression (and its symptoms), issues faced by caregiver and family members who are in denial of their sick family member.

Can't wait to see the next episode...

Btw I think Nino's acting skills have really improved. 很有内心戏的哭戏。

**The bullying issue in the drama really strikes a chord with recent news. These days, in Japan, the news have been covering on a bullying case, whereby a young girl aged 12, had committed suicide due to suspected bullying at school. She had changed school, and since been bullied at school.

Man is no island. We can't live alone. But yet, there are some people who will join the wagon, without thinking straight, and isolate one person, pushing him/ her over the cliff. It's really sad to see such news.

An Unexpected Answer for My Halloween Lesson

Halloween, 31st October, is around the corner. If you walk around Japan now, you will bound to find many pumpkin-related Halloween goods. Like most ALTs, I had a lesson on Halloween with 350+ of my students too.

And unexpectedly, I had a great piece of work amongst the 350+.

As part of the lesson, students have to create a monster, and write down what special powers their monster has. Most students created monsters, literally monsters, and their special powers include shapeshifting, disappearance, flying, running at lightning speed, etc.

But the one piece of work that left a lasting impression is this:

My monster can cause cancer.
It can bother neighbors.
It can change our lives.
My monster can also light fires.

Can you guess what it is?

Yes, it is a picture of a cigarette. My student simply drew a lighted cigarette stick.

He thinks very deeply, don't you think so? Indeed, cigarettes are like monsters.

:P I think my HPB colleagues will love to recruit him as their anti-smoking ambassador. LOL.

I have a FRACTURE?! in my right wrist?!

During my Toi weekend getaway to visit Serene, another Singaporean ALT, I accidentally tripped over a step, and by reflex, my stronger hand- the right hand, broke the fall. Momentarily my hand could not feel anything, but after that pain came. And I assumed it was just a sprain.

The next day, Serene brought me to a drugstore to buy wrist guard and スップ.　(suppu, adhesive cold bandages to cool down the swelling) We continued with our trip and even had a crazy shopping day at Gotenba.

When I was back, my Japanese neighbour advised me to see a doctor. As today is 体育日 (ironical, isn't it... it is the Health and Sports Day today...), a public holiday, clinics were not opened, so we went to a big hospital instead.

Before setting off, my neighbour had already enquired with the hospital. Hence they were expecting me when I reached.

After filling up some forms, I was given a identification band and sent to the A&E Department.




QQ in QQ department.. 救急 sounds like QQ in Japanese.

It was crowded... altogether we spent 5 hours at the hospital, and I had 2 X-rays and 1 CT scan done, to confirm that my sprain is more serious than it appears to be. It is a slight fracture.

All the while, I couldn't really understand what the doctor was saying when he explained my condition. I was trying to catch the keyword, 捻挫 (nenza, sprain), but he said 骨折　(kossetsu, fracture) instead. =_=" It finally dawned upon me that I had a fracture, when he started wrapping my arm in a cast!



Yah.. so here I am, typing one letter by one letter with my clumsy left hand to blog this entry. Under doctor's orders, not to use my right hand for a week, not even writing.

I really feel bad for my bowling team. They even named the team after me, Team Q. :( I don't think I can bowl on the 25th for the competition. It has to be in cast for another 3 weeks.

Anyway, I am still in the state of disbelief. A day before, I had managed to carry all my luggage and cheap deals from Gotenba, and even rode the bicycle back from the station. But, I am really grateful, that I discovered it early under my neighbour's insistence, else it could be aggravated, looking at how I treat it the day before.

But, now I have to learn how to live with just my left hand. And.. I am a right-hander.. and worse, alone. :X

Sports Day! How Different is Japan's from Singapore's?

Just had my first Japanese Sports Day at school. :D

It was such an interesting experience! There are many similarities and yet many other disparities as well.

I liked the variety of races that the school had. Besides the usual olympic style races such as 100m, 200m, 1000m run, hurdles, shot put, long jump and high jump, etc, the Japanese also have the tug-of-war, multi-legged race, skipping with 30 people, and other innovative games such as 足きり or mixed race (doing a variety of activities such as transporting a ball with a dustpan?! :P)



They concentrate not only on individual excellence but group efforts as well. Relay games have more members, 6 or 8, which is unlike Singapore's with only 4. And the 30-member games such as skipping, tug-of-war etc, all encourage massive class efforts. Something which I hope we have when I was in school.

I really miss my secondary school days...

At first I thought running on the sandy-like earthy field will be very difficult, but it functions as well as our rubber tracks at home, too. Had my very virgin run in my 3-legged race, which ended with 2 falls.. -_-" as we never practised running, we always walked. But in the real race, everyone's running so the legs just ran along with the rest. Unfortunately the pace is different, hence I fell not once, but twice! Super malu lah!!

TIP
Since I am on the topic of fields. Here's a tip, or rather, a warning. Do not step on the baseball field. It is out-of-bounds for non-players.

And the weather... It is so nice to exercise in an autumn day, with the breeze and the sun. Yet, it is not too sweaty. I love autumns!

But I'm still unused to having green tea (both hot and cold are served) during Sports Day. I miss my milo trucks dearly. Sports Day= cold milo!



I miss my secondary school days dearly! It's so nice to be so young and full of dreams...

By the way, this coming Monday is a Health and Sports Day, a public holiday. Wonder if there are any special events? Is it like NHLC in Singapore? Mmmm...

Have a Colourful Diet

When I saw this poster in the supermarket days ago, it immediately reminded me of this. One of my ex-projects. :P



懐かしいなあ。。。

Anyway, yup, in Singapore, we advocate for 2+2, which means 2 servings of fruits and 2 servings of vegetables every day. Of course, we also encourage that Singaporeans also include a variety of colours in their diet, as they contribute different minerals and vitamins, vital to our health. Everything in moderation. (LOL... I still remember all the health messages!)

In Japan, according to the poster at least, it advocates for 5 types of fruits and vegetables in a day.

The poster above created by Aeon translates to:

To build your health, fruits and vegetables are essential.
"5 A Day" will help you to stay away from illnesses.
Exercise is important to stay healthy, too.
Please include 5 types of fruits and vegetables in your daily diet.

It's actually pretty easy to include vegetables and fruits in my diet in Japan. There's a wide selection of fruits and vegetables, most of them are local produce, hence freshness is guaranteed.

Another reason would be for practicality. Vegetables tend to have a longer lifespan than meat and fish products. They are also cheaper than their meat counterparts. Hence, I tend to stock more vegetables in my fridge. I think my vegetable intake in Japan definitely surpass that in Singapore :P

Remember to add colours to your diet!

Health Check

Health checks in Japan require us to fill up a survey of our dietary and exercise habits, too. It somehow reminds me of the surveys that the Health Promotion Board conducts, too, especially when I came across the question on my vegetable and salt intake. :P


A translated copy in English with sample answers.

It’s 2+2 every day in Singapore; over here, it does not specify the servings, but we should include vegetables every day.


A closeup on the questions on dietary and exercise habits.

I think I definitely meet the 2+2 quota in Japan. Vegetables have become a stable in my cooking, since they are cheaper and last longer. :)

Btw for new JETs, the health check is taken during the second orientation in your respective prefecture and it includes:

• Height and weight
• Blood pressure
• Waist circumference
• ECG
• X-ray
• Urine test
• Blood test

For those above age 30, you will need to take a stool test as well. Remember to increase your fibre intake before the second orientation at your prefecture.

Smoking

In Singapore, smokers can only smoke in designated areas. In Japan, it’s illegal to smoke as you walk.