![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/IMG_1880.jpg\" "\\"IMG_1880\\"")
<\/a><\/p>\nI got there and found the tourist bureau and got the English-language information from them. Then I was gripped by indecision and stood outside the office for a while and started walking back and forth until I decided to just get on the train and go back two stations and take a bus, cable-car, bus, and ropeway to get to Arima Onsen. Here’s the first bus.<\/p>\n
Of course, I’m an idiot and I got off the bus too early. It was only about 700m walking but about 50m (165ft) of elevation gain.<\/p>\n So the second part of the trip is the Rokko Cable car.<\/p>\n Yep, it’s two cars attached by a cable. Here’s a picture of the small section of rail where they pass each other.<\/p>\n Here’s the car I rode in the lower station.<\/p>\n And in the upper station.<\/p>\n I guess it’s a good way as any to get up a steep hill.<\/p>\n You only have a short time to transfer to the bus and, of course, I spent too much time getting change and taking these pictures and\u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Fortunately, I only had to wait twenty minutes. There was more time to connect to the ropeway from the bus so I could go up and try to find the high point on Mt. Rokko. I thought this was the top.<\/p>\n I didn’t stop at any of the attractions atop Mt. Rokko, including a Music Box Museum that had pamphlets back in Hamamatsu at the Musical Instruments museum.<\/p>\n I was told the highest spot was this weird dome.<\/p>\n And I remember all the towers from when I rode my bike up to the top of Mt. Rokko. Twice. I was young and stupid. I did it during the summer and it was hot at the bottom and freezing at the top. I thought this was the top. I think this area is 880m (about 2900ft) above where I started.<\/p>\n I took some more pictures because it looked like it was clearing up.<\/p>\n This is the ropeway.<\/p>\n Actually, I think this is supposed to be the top of Mt. Rokko, where that tower is.<\/p>\n The next three pictures are of the deepest valley in the Mt. Rokko area.<\/p>\n And finally, it drops straight down into the Arima Onsen area.\u00a0<\/p>\n Of course the ropeway ends in the middle of nowhere. Fortunately the town of Arima is downhill.<\/p>\n I didn’t even bother going to any shrines or temples.<\/p>\n So there’s two main hot springs where you can just go in and have a soak, KInsen and Ginsen. Kinsen is “ferruginous, sodium chloride, saline, high temperature” while Ginsen has two: “carbon dioxide spring (carbonic acid spring)” and “radioactive spring (radium spring).” Of course indecision hit. I wanted to go to the carbonic acid but avoid the radioactive and finally ended up just going to Kinsen. Turns out Ginsen was closed for the week.<\/p>\n The 42°C (107.6°F) bath wasn’t quite hot enough but the 44°C (111.2°F) was actually painful. Of course I sat in the hotter one for a while. I got out and have been only semi-coherent for the rest of the day.<\/p>\n Here’s all the things I bought at Kinsen. Arima Cider, a towel, a comb, and access to the bath.<\/p>\n The Arima cider was not that sweet and pretty good. Especially after taking hot bath.\u00a0<\/p>\n I’ve actually never been to Arima and it was a nice traditional hot spring town that’s been in existence since the 500’s or so. Yeah, three digits.<\/p>\n You wouldn’t think cars would use this street.<\/p>\n I missed lunch again, and about 3:30 I had a matcha soft ice cream cone. Lots of guys were drinking beer or at a stand-up bar having beer or sake, but I figured that would just knock me out.<\/p>\n I took the bus straight back to Umeda station. It was a bit more expensive, but I didn’t have to change buses or trains and I knew even if I fell asleep I’d get woken up when we arrived back at Umeda.<\/p>\n This is a picture near the bus stop and I knew this would be a million dollar picture after the fall colors change.<\/p>\n On the way back I saw this Friendly and I think this is one where I went on a date in the past with my old fianc\u00e9e.<\/p>\n I went out to find dinner and I figured I’d try the new South Station building (the Daimaru) and almost went to the Mexican restaurant, Chico’s and Charlie’s. We used to go all the time back when I lived in Japan. I ended up going back to the Yodobashi Camera and the all-you-can-eat bread place, because nobody was lining up anywhere in the South Station building but they were at “Baqet”.<\/p>\n So that’s it for today. I wonder what I’ll do tomorrow.<\/p>\n Please forgive today’s post if it’s incoherent. It’ll get obvious what I did to become incoherent. I’m also deleting a lot of pictures today because they’re repetitious. Like lots of ropeway and cable car pictures that all look alike. But I’m getting ahead of myself. Today I didn’t know what to do, so I figured I’d go to Kobe. I got there and found the tourist bureau and got the English-language information from them. Then I was gripped by indecision and stood outside the office for a while and started walking back and forth until I decided to just get on the train and go back two stations and take … Continue reading Japan Day 37<\/span> <\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"