ノスタルジックな情緒溢れる渋温泉郷 / Shibu Onsen, a Nostalgic Hot-spring Village

Shibu Onsen, located in Nagano Prefecture in the Honshu mainland of Japan, is a hot-spring resort that has a history as long as 1,300 years.
Traditional wooden ryokan (Japanese inn) line the cobblestone streets on which you can stroll in your yukata and geta (clogs) to fully enjoy the atmosphere of a Japanese hot springs resort. There are souvenir shops, shooting galleries and restaurants in the town.

Shibu Onsen has nine public bath houses used by local people every day. “Kyu-to meguri” (the tour of the nine bath houses for purification) is designed to provide the visitors in Shibu Onsen with the opportunity of enjoying the bounty of its hot springs. You can try these public baths, which have different sources and medical effects.
It is traditionally said that good fortune, such as protection from evil, safe delivery and a healthy baby as well as perpetual youth and longevity, comes to those who do the entire bath house tour by visiting all nine.
Footbaths are also recommended for those who do not have enough time for the tour. There are two footbaths in the town: Nofutomaru and Kyusoku-dokoro Shingen.

Since the origins of Shibu Onsen some 1,300 years ago, many wooden buildings have undergone repeated extensions and alterations, which has resulted in their complex structures.

September 2013, Shibu Onsen, Yamanouchi-town, Nagano-prefecture, Japan.
Olympus OM-D/E-M5
(* refer to the Official Website of Shinshu Shibu Onsen Ryokan Association)

渋温泉は，1300年前の開湯以来，湯治場や草津街道の宿場街として長い歴史を重ねてきた山深い，鄙びた温泉街です。
渋温泉は，幾度も土砂災害や火事に見舞われながら再興し，今の街の形を造りあげたそうです。大正から昭和初期に建てられ、増築と改築を繰り返した複雑な木造建築が多数残る独特の景観がノスタルジックな雰囲気を醸し出しています。
格子窓、土壁、頭上に張り出す渡り廊下の欄干，石畳の細い路地が作り出す空間には，何ともいえない味わいがあります。また，昔懐かしい射的場や卓球場などが今なお現役なのも魅力的です。
（　参照　：　信州渋温泉旅館組合公式サイト）

2013年9月　長野県下高井郡山ノ内町渋温泉郷
Olympus OM-D/E-M5