300-Year-Old Hot Spring Inn Conjures Spirit of Anime; Traditional Onsen Culture Endures in Mountains of Gunma Pref.
The exterior of Sekizenkan is reminiscent of the bathhouse in the movie 'Spirited Away.'
NAKANOJO, Gunma — Sekizenkan is an old ryokan inn in Nakanojo, Gunma Prefecture, that is believed to have inspired the bathhouse in the acclaimed anime film 'Spirited Away,' and it is still visited by many fans.
About 330 years have passed since Sekizenkan was founded in 1694. The ryokan, located in a historical hot spring area called Shima Onsen hot spa, allows guests to experience a journey back in time.
Guests cross a red bridge, the symbol of the ryokan, before reaching the entrance while listening to the gentle babbling of a river. The inn's Honkan main building, Japan's oldest existing wooden bathhouse, was built in the Edo period (1603-1867). It was a two-story building at first, but another story was added in the Meiji era (1868-1912).
'We can observe the architectural changes since the Edo period,' Yurie Kurosawa, 44, the ryokan's 21st president, said proudly.
Until about 60 years ago, most of the guests visited the ryokan to cure an illness or heal wounds, and they stayed for more than two weeks. They brought futons for themselves and hung their laundry along the outer corridor. In the main building, guests still prepare their futons in modestly furnished Japanese-style rooms like in the old days.
The 'Roman no Tunnel' at the end of the main building is reminiscent of the tunnel in the anime through which the heroine Chihiro and other characters pass. I went up in a nearby elevator to a wooden ryokan building called Sansou, which was built in 1936 because the number of guests increased mainly due to advances in transportation.
The techniques of traditional craftsmen can be seen in the rooms, such as the intricate craftwork of kumiko shoji sliding doors and tokonoma alcoves. Then Prime Minister Hideki Tojo stayed in Sansou in 1942.
Going further up the elevator, I reached Kashoutei, a ryokan building that has modern guest rooms.
The bath is named 'Genroku no Yu' and is located beside the main building. There are five bathtubs in the tiled floor, and the windows are arch-shaped in the Taisho Romanesque style. The changing room and the baths are combined in an unusual style, and that structure remains as it was when it was constructed in 1930.
The ryokan offers guests a tour of the buildings three times a week. On a busy day, the tour has as many as about 30 guests.
'I felt the long history of the ryokan during the tour. I was also impressed by the low ceilings and old glass,' said a man, 60, who participated in a tour in late April.
'I want to maintain the therapeutic style of the inn,' Kurosawa said.
Sekizenkan will continue to convey traditional Japanese hot spring culture.
Sekizenkan
The Yomiuri Shimbun
Address: 4236 Shima-Kabuto, Nakanojo, Gunma Prefecture
Access: Take a bus from JR Nakanojo Station to Shima Onsen. It is about a 50-minute drive from the Shibukawa-Ikaho Interchange of the Kanetsu Expressway by car.
Memo: Visitors can use the bath without staying overnight from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. for ¥1,500 for adults.
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