Spring is here! The days are getting warmer, flowers are blooming, and (most importantly) the hana-mi festival is on its way!

Meanwhile, things are still a bit frigid up on Mt. Bandai. Dr. Orr caught wind of our lack of tourist-like activities and took us on a mountainside adventure Saturday via automobile since the really neat places are rather inaccessible by bike, unfortunately.

First on our list of stops was the local Samurai school, 日新館 (Nisshinkan). Well, it's actually a replica. The original was burnt down during the Boshin War in 1868. A wealthy gentleman had the entire facility rebuilt and opened up to the public as a tourist attraction in 1987. In its prime, 日新館 was considered the very best of nearly 300 Samurai schools across Japan. From a very young age, students lived by the principles of Confucianism along with the seven rules, called 什の掟 (Jyu no okite). They are:

1. You must do what your seniors tell you to do.
2. You must bow to your seniors.
3. You must not tell lies.
4. You must not behave in a cowardly manner.
5. You must not bully those weaker than yourself.
6. You must not eat outside.
   
7. You must not talk with women outside.

With the exception of the last two, these rules are still considered very valorous principles by which to live in Japan. Students trained and studied unrelentingly every day, learning everything from astronomy to weapons combat to strategic warfare. 日新館 housed what is believed to be the first swimming pool in Japan, where students practiced underwater combat and swimming while fully clad in armor. The last stand of the Boshin war actually took place in Aizu, resulting in a people infinitely proud of their heritage even to this day.

Stop number two was 毘沙門沼 (Bishamon-numa), one of the five multi-colored lakes created as a result of Mt. Bandai erupting in 1888. This one tends to be a beautiful aquamarine tint that the college adopted as an official color. Even surrounded by snow it was a pretty sight, but Dr. Orr tells us it's far more incredible during hana-mi or fall when the leaves turn.

Last but definitely not least, we visited a Japanese-style bathhouse at Nekoma Hotel next to Lake Hibara. These types of baths are of an entirely different sort than what we're used to in America. You've got to completely wash yourself at one of the bathing stations before even entering the water. There's no such thing as over-washing for foreigners since most Japanese figure we're going to do it wrong anyway. Finally, it's time to soak in the communal pool. We decided to take a dip outside, though, in what's called a 露天風呂 (rotemburo), or open-air bath. As we relaxed in piping hot natural mountain water, we looked out on the frozen lake. If taking pictures in the bathhouse wasn't practically illegal, I'd have some incredible photos to upload.

We spent the next day with Dr. Orr again, but with his family too this time. His wife, Sakurako-san made lunch for us as we attended the weekly English discussion meeting at their apartment. Afterward, we went up to the family's condo in the mountains for a bit more scenery and relaxation. We did the whole bathing thing once more, but spent some time in the sauna too (that's where Jamie and I are in the above picture). Nobody else was there, so we sneaked a few photos. The view was absolutely incredible across the adjacent lake, especially at sunset. We're lucky to have a family like the Orrs around to show us how beautiful Aizu and the surrounding prefecture really can be.

This week: know your Japanese baths!

• 銭湯 - Sentou (sen-tow) - the general term for any bathhouse or public bath
  
• 温泉 - Onsen (own-sen) - term for a hot spring or spa fed by natural spring water
  
• 露天風呂 - Rotemburo (row-ten-boo-row) - usually the same as onsen, but open to the air

Thanks to this weekend, I'm relaxed and finally ready for classes to start!