What the Heck is that Smell?

It took a few hours into my usual morning work routine before I realized that the musky, rotten egg smell I kept getting whiffs of was coming from none other than me. Not a great epiphany when you're sitting in a sea of desks surrounded by your co-workers. It happened to be a smell that haunted me throughout my Valentine weekend getaway with my wife, and now, as if to tease me...it was back.

Over the recent Valentine's day weekend, my wife and I thought it would be fun to getaway to the Japanese Alps - about 2 hours north of where we are living in Nagoya. We hadn't heard too much about the Alps other than the fact that Nagano was nearby (1998 Winter Olympic host City). Yearning for a little snow, and a new sight to see, we found a great B&B at the base of Mt. Norikura, and headed out for the weekend.

The B&B touted a nearby natural Onsen, which is a Japanese spa or bathhouse. Onsens are really popular amongst the Japanese and are deeply engrained in their culture. Americans don't normally bathe publicly, so it takes some getting used to, but having tried it a few times, I have to say I was really looking forward to escaping to a natural spa in the mountains!

I'm still new at this so, unbeknownst to me, Sulfur is a prominent bi-product of natural spas. I entered the spa house as giddy as a kid, but this being my first "natural spa" experience I was overwhelmed by the rotten egg smell that was hard to avoid. Needless to say, I tried to shake it off and enjoy my nice bath in the open mountain air. However, putting my clothes back on that had been baking in the Sulfur-rich air was not so nice.

I left the spa house feeling clean, but reeking of rotten eggs. I was hoping it would go under the radar and it was just a product of sensitive nostrils, but seeing my wife's face upon entering the room led me to believe otherwise. We put the clothes in a bag and sealed it for the weekend until the washer could tackle it.

Unfortunately for me on this odoriferous morning at work, the the sulfur was too much of a match for our washing machine...and I was wearing the T-shirt to prove it!