Tuesday, October 24, 2017

Trip to Manza

Last weekend, no, last Friday and Saturday, I went to Manza with my friend. Yes I went out for a night. It was unusual. Though some of my friends and my family know, I don't like traveling so much. So probably more than 20 years have passed since I took a overnight trip. At that time, one of my friends moved to Osaka, so to have the same memory, she, another friend and I wet out for a night to NIKKO in Tochigi. Luckily our friendship has been kept via "facebook".


The friend who took the trip with me lives in the next prefecture, so I went to her town by train, from there she drove me to MANZA.

On the way we passed KUSAZU, which is very famous hot spring spot and one of  the most famous 5 Japanese hot spring towns.  We enjoyed taking a leisurely walking there. You might know "karuiizawa". It is also a famous town for tourist. Kusatsu is near Karuizawa. However, Kusatsu town is very kind to our wallet. Because without shopping, or window shopping, we enjoyed the town watching hot spring smoke, talking with shop women and men (most of them are elderly).



At  Manza, we had wonderful hot springs. They have 6 hot springs at the same place. Actaully the inn is selected one of the most popular and wonderful  20 inns in Japan.



Anyway we talked, talked and talked.

Both of us are almost the same age, so we didn't go to bed late. On the other hand both of us woke at 5:30. As soon as we woke our talking started. It was too early to go to the cafeteria in the inn. So we were talking until it was open. However we almost missed the breakfast. Because when we check the time coincidently, it was already 8 o'clock. The time which breakfast is served is until 9.




2 comments:

AikenJan said...

I would guess that to most American women “girl friends” are very important in their lives and most make an effort to make an effort to share time together, sometimes it’s just a “girls’ night out” and many times it’s meeting for an overnight trip. A friend of mine just flew to Wisconsin to spend a weekend with 17 (!) of her college girl friends (she is in her mid-60’s.). They have maintained a close friendship for at lest 40 years. One of my closest friends was my college roommate over 50 years ago...we talk, e-mail and visit continually. If you read any American literature, especially fiction, it is always filled with close female relationships...often life-long ones. Why? I think it’s because of a “kindred spirit” among females...women just see things much differently than men and know they can find interested and sympathetic minds in other women. Stong female bonds are really quite remarkable in that so many scatter to opposite areas of this vast country and often move many times as adults, but because their friendship is so important they make a concerted effort to keep in touch.
Although there are many exceptions, it is my observation that American men are not nearly as diligent, nor is it as important, to have a close-knit circle of friends. If they go away, together,it’s almost aleays for a specific reason...to play golf, to attend a sporting event, etc. generally they do not meet just to “hang out” and talk about their families and lives. Jan

Mieko said...

Thanks for your comments, Jan. I learnted the word " kindred spirit" inEnglish and even in Japanese.
It is a good word, we or I tend to use women tend to flock. And I consciously try to avoid it. It was the one of reasons why I chose an indesutrial field as my major. However these days to see my self, my mother and my mother in-law, I realized that women has a kindred spirit" so it is important to have female friends in our life.