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Getting Wet
Adventures in the Japanese Bath
Eric Talmadge
Hardcover 256 pages
152 x 226mm 560g
ISBN : 978-4-7700-3020-7 / 4-7700-3020-7
Publish : Oct, 2006
Price : $22.00 |
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[ About the Book ]
Getting Wet is a joyful, first-person plunge into Japan's bathing culture—joining the millions of Japanese who not only bathe everyday, but find it a must to traverse the country on a search for the perfect bathing experience.
From bathing "theme parks" which come complete with tubs for your pets, to the luxurious dinners served in the rarified atmosphere of the most expensive hot spring resorts, to the calming effects of an odorous sea-water bath carved from an isolated coastline, the author draws on his travels to create a delightful, enlightening volume that goes beyond the scope of typical travel books on Japan.
Readers follow the author on his skin-tingling (and sometimes electrifying) encounters as he reflects on the art of bathing in ancient times and the dos and don'ts of going au natural in contemporary Japan. The science of bathing—what hot water does to you, and your skin, and why. The truth behind the claims of healing powers. The unavoidable progression from simple nudity to the business of sex. And some reflections on how the bathing culture has changed and where it may be going.
In a more practical vein, an afterword offers sage advice, guidelines, and other matters for those who actually may be thinking of testing out the waters.
A rollicking dip into Japanese culture, Getting Wet is one man's journey from his home tub into the many facets of the country's bathing scene, where he learns, amoung other things, that:- the number of Japanese who die in the bath each year rivals the number killed in traffic accidents
- Tokyo's largest bathing theme park celebrated the arrival of its one-millionth visitor within one year of its opening
- archeological digs suggest the Japanese were bathing in hot springs 10,000 years ago; aristocrats were singing their praises more than 1,000 years ago
- direct descendants of feudal-era public bath attendants called "hot water girls" are a central part of Japan's sex industry
- an American-born Japanese who was denied entry into a bath took his case all the way to the Japanese Supreme Court
- electroshock therapy is alive and well, and coursing through a popular kind of tub found in public baths
Reviews
"Insightful, thoughtful and often hilarious."
—Publishers Weekly
"...Informative and delightful.... From traditional rustic spas to more urban "soaplands," which serve the sex industry, this book is as enjoyable as, well, a Japanese bath. ...This is a splendid selection for any travel collection."
—Library Journal
"The plentiful photographs are delightful, and Talmadge is an appealing writer."
—Washington Post Book World
"Eric Talmadge . . . has done a brilliant job . . . His lucid, limpid prose resembles the clear, pure surface of a hot spring tub; it's like the best of a New Yorker essay, transplanted East."
—The Wall Street Journal Asia
About the Author
ERIC TALMADGE is the Tokyo news editor for The Associated Press. His articles on bathing in Japan have appeared in newspapers around the world, including the Los Angeles Times, the Seattle Times, Toront Globe and Mail, and Japan Times and the Honolulu Star-Bulletin. He has been a resident of Japan for over twenty years.
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