Sometimes, there are facilities where I prefer soaking in the hot spring over the sauna. Such facilities have common features. First, they have hot springs with a melting texture. And, they have open-air baths themed around gardens or forests that allow you to become one with nature. If these conditions are met, I prioritize entering the hot spring over the sauna. The place I visited today, Natural Spring Gintou Touji Shuuraku, is a prime example of such a wonderful hot spring facility. Natural Spring Gintou Touji Shuuraku is located about 500m from the Kobe Sanda Premium Outlets in Kita-ku, Kobe City. The Kobe Sanda Premium Outlets is a place I often visited during my student days, but I didn't know there was such a fantastic hot spring facility nearby. Back then, I had little awareness of saunas and hot springs, so I only visited for shopping. Shopping can be tiring. It's exhausting even when you're alone, but it's even more tiring when you have to accompany friends or a partner on their shopping trips. While spreading smiles and saying kind words like 'That looks great on you,' deep down, I just want to go home quickly, go to the sauna, and sleep. If it were me now, when invited to go shopping, I would counter-suggest, 'There's an amazing hot spring facility 500m from here, why don't we go there? And then have a delicious meal before heading back?' I've digressed, but I arrived at Natural Spring Gintou Touji Shuuraku. The entrance gate is impressive, and passing through it, you proceed along a path through the garden to the entrance. The corridor leading to the large bath after checking in is very retro. The facility's pathways surround the garden, allowing you to view the garden from anywhere you walk. It's evident that even beyond the large bath, there is a commitment to thematic design. My expectations for the hot spring grew even more. I quickly undressed and entered the large bath. Instantly, I was enveloped in steam so thick that I wondered if it was a steam sauna. There was also a faint scent of the hot spring. Steam rose abundantly from the natural hot spring bath prepared indoors. The dim lighting added to the mystical atmosphere. Looking at the faces of those soaking in the natural hot spring, everyone seemed to be losing consciousness. And they looked like they were losing consciousness in a very pleasant way. Is the hot spring really that enjoyable? I suppressed my eagerness to enter and cleansed myself. First, I entered the indoor natural hot spring. The moment I stepped into the bath, a slippery sensation enveloped me. It felt like stepping into lotion, or perhaps even softer. I submerged my lower body, then my upper body in that order. Soaking in the water, when I ran my hand over my skin, it felt smooth and slippery. This must be what they mean by a melting hot spring. Stretching out my arms and legs in the spacious bath, I experienced an exquisite moment. The steam filling the dimly lit bathroom further enhanced the atmosphere. I felt like I could soak in the water forever, but as expected of a natural hot spring, my body warmed up more and more as I soaked. I headed straight for the cold plunge bath. The cold plunge bath can accommodate about five people, is deep, and has a gentle water temperature of about 18 degrees. Even though I hadn't been in the sauna, I was enveloped in an incredible sense of refreshment. My usual routine is sauna → cold plunge bath → outdoor air bath, but the flow of natural hot spring → cold plunge bath → outdoor air bath is also very nice. I exited the cold plunge bath and moved to the outdoor air bath space of the open-air bath. The open-air bath is themed around a garden, with stones and trees planted to create a design that allows you to become one with nature. The season is transitioning from autumn to winter. Enjoying the outdoor air bath while gazing at the autumn leaves provides even more relaxation and happiness than usual. As always, when I'm in the outdoor air bath, I naturally start smiling. It's not something I do consciously. Entering the sauna or hot spring, dipping in the cold plunge bath, and sitting in a chair just makes it happen. It's mysterious. I've been leading a very happy life in the long term, and the biggest factor is probably having encountered hot springs and saunas. I'm sure of it. Influenced by my sauna-loving father, I enter the sauna every day, reset the day, and welcome a new tomorrow. Being able to establish this habit can be considered a stroke of luck. In the end, I repeated the hot spring and cold plunge bath cycle four times that day. I didn't enter the sauna, but I was able to achieve the ultimate feeling of comfort. Now, after getting out of the bath, it's time for a meal.

Before visiting this facility, I also researched the restaurant within the facility. Apparently, the 'Yurinchi Set Meal' is popular. I looked up photos on the internet, and it looked very delicious. When I entered the restaurant, the staff asked, 'What would you like to order?' I slightly overlapped their question with my order, 'Yurinchi Set Meal, please.' After a while, the dish was brought to me. I warmed up with some soup and then bit into the crispy fried chicken. It was incredibly delicious. Among the Yurinchi dishes I've had, this was top class. Having soaked in the hot spring, my taste buds were sharpened, and my sense of happiness was heightened, making everything taste delicious, but even without that, it was delicious. The perfect route of feeling good from the sauna and hot spring and eating a delicious meal was completed once again tonight. As I write my travel records, it always follows the same flow: sauna → delicious meal. However, there are different experiences each time, so I never get bored. Also, I don't take this for granted. I travel while savoring happiness each time. I am grateful for being able to enter the sauna and eat meals. And I work hard so that I can have another wonderful trip next time. When various things become taken for granted, the experiences before you can become blurred. It becomes difficult to focus. Therefore, I believe it's important to travel with gratitude each time. The first day of my one-night, two-day trip has ended. In the morning, I enjoyed the natural hot spring and sauna at Sanda Natural Hot Spring Kotobuki no Yu, and at night, I was completely relaxed by the natural hot spring at Natural Spring Gintou Touji Shuuraku. It was a perfect day. I will return to the hotel and sleep soundly. Tomorrow, I will visit a large facility that I have been curious about for some time. The scale of the sauna might be the largest in Hyogo Prefecture. The name of the facility located in Kawanishi City, Hyogo Prefecture, is SPA Kisera Kawanishi.