The journey to Nagoya was a series of traffic jams. I left the hotel 'Seaside Hotel Maiko Villa Kobe' where I stayed for the pre-party at 7:30 in the morning. I was supposed to arrive at Wellbe Imaike around 10:30, but I actually arrived at 12:00. There was an accident causing a traffic jam from Kyoto to Shiga. However, since the purpose of the trip was the sauna, there was no problem even if the arrival time was delayed. The best time was waiting for me. I arrived at Wellbe Imaike at 12:00. Standing in front of the building, I felt a sense of accomplishment because I could conquer the Wellbe Group's saunas. Wellbe is a nationally famous sauna facility with three locations: Fukuoka, Sakae in Nagoya, and Imaike. I had already visited Wellbe Fukuoka and Wellbe Sakae, so the only one left was Wellbe Imaike. I checked in with a grin, quickly undressed in the changing room, and headed to the large bath. Barley tea was placed in front of the entrance. I gulped down a cup and entered the bath. Wellbe Imaike is the only facility in the Wellbe Group where you can enjoy hot springs. It uses 'Ikeda Sakura Onsen' sourced in Gifu Prefecture, which feels great. It's autumn. The slightly chilly outside air enhances the pleasure of the hot spring. After warming my body in the hot spring for a while, I finally head to the sauna room. Wellbe Imaike has three types of saunas: the main sauna, the forest sauna, and a single-person sauna called 'Karafuro.' First, I visit the main sauna. The benches have wide seats with fluffy mats, and the room is properly hot at about 100°C. There is a TV in the sauna room, allowing you to relax while watching. Looking at the walls, the wood color has turned dark brown, showing a lot of character. As a long-established sauna facility, it has been in operation for decades. This accumulation is reflected in the color of the sauna room walls. It is proof that it has continued to heal and be loved by people for a long time. I want to express my gratitude for being able to enter such a sauna filled with the thoughts and history of many people. After heating my body sufficiently in the sauna, I plunge into the cold water bath. Wellbe's cold plunge bath is cold. I think it's probably around 13°C. My body cools down rapidly. The air passing through my airway also feels cold. I move from the cold plunge bath to the open-air area, sit on a chair, and enjoy the outdoor air bath. I felt like the journey had finally begun. I was in a daze and couldn't move for a while, but I pulled myself together and started the second set of sauna. Next, I go to the forest sauna. Wellbe Imaike's forest sauna is inspired by the forests of Finland, and in the quiet sauna room, you can enjoy self-löyly. Additionally, there is a cold plunge bath installed inside the sauna room, allowing you to cool your body in the cold plunge bath when you think 'I can't take it anymore' in the sauna, and then enjoy the sauna bath again, creating an infinite loop. I enjoyed it according to that concept. I warmed my body to the limit and then entered the cold plunge bath inside the sauna room. As an experience, it's interesting, but personally, I don't feel much refreshment from the cold plunge bath inside the sauna room. The room is nearly 100°C, so even if you enter the cold plunge bath, your neck and above remain hot, and you heat up again as soon as you get out of the cold plunge bath. After all, entering the cold plunge bath outside the sauna and then transitioning to the outdoor air bath feels the most refreshing. For the third set, I decided to enjoy the 'Karafuro.' Karafuro is modeled after the bathhouse of 'Hokkeji' in Nara Prefecture, a building from Japan's Tenpyo era. It is designed with the concept of a meditation experience where you face yourself while bathing in the steam generated by self-löyly. It is a completely single-person space, shutting you off from the outside world. The moment I entered, I felt as if I had stepped into another world. I sat on the tatami mat and slowly poured a tea? water? with the aroma of roasted green tea onto the sauna stove. With a sizzling sound, the soft steam enveloped my body. I was the only one in this space. I couldn't hear any outside noise. There was a world here just for me. I was able to spend an exquisite time where a sense of security and liberation coexisted. After the sauna, I refreshed myself in the 13°C cold plunge bath, and the morning sauna session was over.

After the sauna, it's time for the long-awaited meal. After the morning traffic jam and the exquisite sauna, I'm starving. This meal is also one of the highlights of the sauna trip because there are flavors that can only be tasted at that location or facility. As I stepped into the restaurant, a friendly staff member greeted me. I sat at the counter. Looking around the restaurant, there were two people having a lively conversation while drinking beer in the middle of the day. They seemed to be around my father's age. Even though the sun was still high, they seemed to be already enjoying themselves. They must have entered the sauna from the morning and were enjoying the exquisite beer after the sauna. I ordered garlic fried rice and motsunabe. Since I didn't plan to meet anyone, I decided to consume a lot of garlic to recharge my energy. Having been steamed in one of the nation's finest saunas, the meal tasted exceptionally delicious. Sauna is a magic that makes food taste better. If possible, I would like to enter the sauna before every meal in the morning, noon, and night. After finishing my meal, I was reading a book in the retro-feeling reclining room when a sudden drowsiness hit me. I couldn't resist the sleepiness. I closed my eyes and drifted off. When I woke up, it was 4 PM. It seemed I had taken a nap for about two hours. I tend to feel tense easily, so I usually can't sleep deeply even in sauna facilities. It's often only about 30 minutes when I do sleep. However, I must have been very relaxed at Wellbe Imaike. I had completely fallen into a deep sleep. The only other facilities where I've taken naps for several hours are Ogaki Sauna in Gifu Prefecture, Spa Alps in Toyama Prefecture, and Kobe Sauna in Hyogo Prefecture, so Wellbe Imaike has now joined the ranks of the most relaxing facilities. Now that I've fully recovered my energy, let's head to today's accommodation. I plan to move from Nagoya City to the Gifu Prefecture area and stay at a hotel near Owari Seto Station. You might wonder why I'm moving to Gifu from the central Nagoya area. It's because there's a facility I really want to visit. While researching saunas in Aichi and Gifu, I found an incredibly wonderful facility. It's a super sento that, despite being a public bathhouse, has three types of saunas and three types of cold plunge baths (using groundwater), as well as a natural hot spring with a constant flow and Japan's largest outdoor air bath space, located in Tajimi City, Gifu Prefecture. I'm planning to head there now. The name of the facility is 'Tenko no Yu.'