I've been in Montreal for nearly two months now, and have settled in quite well. Am I missing my former home, however? You bet I am.
Although I am content with things here, I do miss a lot of things from Japan. And Susono. Of course I miss my material possessions like the car and motorbike, but really I miss cultural things, like the way people communicate, like izakaya (especially tori-ichi in Susono), and, especially especially, onsen.
In my search to replace what I am missing, I found a spa in the mountains north of Montreal. Actually, there are several, one of which is even called O-Furo (which means bath in Japanese!). And on Sunday, I went to a spa called<a href="http://www.spalerefuge.com/index.php"> La Refuge</a>, which comes as close to an onsen as I'm likely to find here.
It is a lovely spa, less than an hour's drive from the city. Yes, different from onsen - people have to wear bathing suits unlike in Japan where we go naked; the water was not as hot; and, the worst thing for me - it smelled like chlorine. However, as long as I turn off my comparison-meter, La Refuge was excellent. A wet and a dry sauna, a cold bath, including a cold river plunge!, and two hot baths. Big comfy sofas to relax on, herbal tea on demand - a very relaxing day, really, and I hope to go again for sure. Or even, maybe I could check out O-Furo!
<a href="http://www.spalerefuge.com/index.php">http://www.spalerefuge.com/index.php</a>
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