Nozawa Onsen

Before I went to Japan for the third and last time, I thought about making this trip a bit different. So I decided to try WWOOF Japan, kind of an exchange, when you help people in exchange for food and acomodation. I chose three places, but in the end I went only to one of them. Due to the change of plans I cancelled the first one, from the other one I didn’t receive an answer. Below is the link for more information.

Initially, I intended to stay in Nozawa for two weeks. What I didn’t expect was that I’d be feeling stuck. This “program” was in a hostel in the style of Alpen accommodation in Europe. My responsibilities were washing dishes, calling guests to eat, cleaning rooms, and preparing the tables. In the end, there was not so much work. I finished every day before noon and had the whole day free until dinner. Because this place is located in a small village in the mountains, and getting to the closest bigger town takes about an hour, it was hard to make any trips. Another option was to enjoy hot springs, which were free in this village and there were many of them, with different temperatures, types of water and so on. The biggest question I still ask myself is, why did I keep visiting the only one that was paid? But it was a nice place, with the outdoor part as well; next to the bath was a pond with colorful fish, so I could sit there, soaking in hot water, while the gentle mountain breeze was cooling me down, watching the golden fish swimming in the water.

So one day, I decided to go to the top of the mountain since it was a lake, according to Google Maps. I was so foolish. I only took 400ml of water in the summer heat when the temperature was above 32°C. Before getting in a third of the journey, all my water was gone. However, I kept going. As I ascended, I saw the beautiful panorama of the Japanese Alps, with some peaks over 2000m. Since I’m not used to such high mountains, I was bewildered by their beauty. As I was nearing the rise, the road led through the forest with old ruin-like houses. I had a strange feeling there since no one was around. On the map was a restaurant, so I thought I’d buy something to drink, however, everything was closed. The lake was still too far, the temperature too high, and I was too thirsty, so I turned back and walked back. On my way, I came across a canal next to the road with crystal clear water, with some moss growing inside. I thought that since moss was growing, the water must be good. So I filled my bottle a bit. And I didn’t die. The road that I took uphill was too long; there was an option of taking the rocky road meant for mountain bikes. I ended up dodging super fast bikes and hurting my knees in descending. From that time onwards, my knees were a bit damaged. If you ever have a choice, take the one that won’t hurt your body.