01x08 - Lucius Learns Bathing Etiquette in Japan

[bunniefuu]

How much is this?

That’ll cost you one as .

I’ll take two, please.

Thank you.

-Okay, let’s go.
-Yes.

It’s delicious.
Your shop's grilled chicken is so good.

Thanks. But you know…

it’s been a while since I took over
my dad’s business,

but it still doesn’t taste as good
as the way my dad made it.

But…

I still have customers like you,
who buy my grilled chicken,

and that's why I can make a living.

So I’m thankful for that every day.

Rome has become a great place.

Everyone is full of energy and life.

And look at that.

What?

Just like that bathhouse over there,

the thermae industry is on the rise.

The bath

is a wonderful place that relieves
fatigue and provides strength.

Speaking of baths,

have you seen Lucius lately?

I haven’t seen him recently.

When we were younger, I was a rascal,

and I was annoyed with how
Lucius was so kind,

and honest.

So I caused him lots of trouble.

But I’m really thankful to him.

Thanks to him,
I was able to become honest with myself.

I want to talk about those
good ole days when I see him again.

Next time, the three of us
should go take a bath together.

I can come along?

Of course. Let’s have fun together.

Thanks! I’ll give you one on the house.

-Oh really?
-Of course!

Mr. Modestus.

Yes?

You’ve been working all day since morning.

Why don't you call it a day?

I can’t go home until I fix all the cracks
on these heating pipes.

But…

This is the bathhouse

that my grandfather designed
and my father continued to maintain.

I can't spare any effort.

But it’s very hot,

so you should at least take a break.

I am a thermae architect.

Heat from the water can't stop someone
who has given his life to the bathhouses.

Your grandfather and father
were both wonderful architects.

Especially your grandfather.

He was a great man

who made that hot spring pool in Campania.

But it seemed like
he experienced some hardships

when that tyrant Nero
started to take notice of him.

I’m proud of both
my grandfather and father.

-By the way, Sir…
-What is it?

I temporarily fixed the cracks for now,
but the material itself is old,

so you may have to
replace everything sooner or later.

I'm prepared to close this place down

once a large-scale renovation
like that becomes necessary.

A public bathhouse owned by the country

may be able to renovate
as much as they please,

but we don’t have that kind of
financial resources.

This is one of the historical bathhouses
that’s been around

since the Roman Republic was established.

Well, our business
isn’t doing so well either.

No way…

But there are people who come here
because they prefer

this quaint atmosphere.

But it’s very few, as you can see.

The truth is, the money we spend
on the water bill and sl*ves,

exceeds our income.

And to make things even worse,

we’ve been dealing with a bigger problem.

A problem?

One of the main reasons why
we lost many customers,

is because those people
started coming to this bathhouse.

Those people?

What?

They’re former auxilia from
the Roman province of Germania.

After serving in the army for 25 years,
they received their Roman citizenship,

and for some reason
they recently moved into this area.

How barbaric.

They don't know
the proper way to take a bath!

No matter how historical a bathhouse is,

they would lose customers

when people like that
become frequent visitors.

I'm afraid of how
they will react if we warn them…

No, you shouldn’t go!

There’s no point talking to them.

Mr. Modestus!

Hey, you guys!

Why are you washing your clothes,
and scrubbing your body in the tub?

What do you think this bath water is for?

This bath water

is not intended
for washing bodies and other items.

If you can't understand that,
get out of here right now!

We’re Roman citizens!

A Roman citizen is free to do
what they want in Rome.

Let’s stop this…

The only people
who have that freedom are the ones

who have the pride and dignity of a Roman!

Don’t call yourself a Roman citizen
when you don’t even know

how to use the Roman-style baths.

You b*stard!

Punch me and get it out of your system.
Then get out of here!

Mr. Modestus!

BATH

You b*stards! Are you satisfied now?

Hurry up and get out of here!
This is a place for relaxation…

Where am I?

It seems like I came to that world again…

Oh no. I'm inside the tub
with my clothes on…

If someone saw me like this,

they'll think that I'm a barbarian too!

Hello.

Seeing the flat-faced people
puts me at ease.

These people's love for cleanliness
might exceed the Romans.

Oomph.

And their manners as well…

It's perfect!

There are only two people here.

Now’s the chance.

Whether you can relax in the bath or not

depends on the people
sharing the bath with you.

These flat-faced people

give their heart and soul to the bath,

so who better than them
to share a bath with?

Hello.

This bath never disappoints.

If the Roman provinces
have citizens like them,

peace will prevail

no matter how far we expand.

I’m sure these people

will understand the Romans
through the art of bathing…

Germanics?

BODY SOAP

Who wants soap?

-Yeah!
-Okay.

Thanks!

These b*stards!

Excuse me…

can we ask you to
not wash yourself inside the bathtub?

That might be
how you do it in your country,

but this is Japan,

so can you please bathe the Japanese way?

Like this?

You have to place this on your head!

Oh really? It looks good on you!

They don't understand us…

These people never learn…

Stop it, all of you!

Where do you think you are?

Why don’t you show some manners!

What's so funny?

I don’t understand what you're saying!

Stop bothering us. Got it?

Don't push yourself too hard.

They're unforgivable!

The situation is getting worse…

This foreigner over here
has good manners, but…

I brought some beer!

That looks good.

All right!

Cheers!

Hey, that's disgusting.

No, look at that!

What are you doing?

Are you fooling around?

I’ll give you a taste of
what a real Roman is like!

Hey, are you okay?

Hold on. This won't be a fair battle

if I’m the only one with a weapon.

All right. There's another one.

Wait.

Take this.

Thank you.

W… what’s that stance?

I can't attack carelessly

since I don’t know his style of fighting.

Take this!

These barbarians are not common men…

They might have been soldiers
in the special forces…

I can’t let my guard down.

Come at me.

He’s just as I expected.
He represented Vladivostok

at the fencing championship in Russia.

This guy is not bad either.
They're equally matched.

But…

this fight has only…

just begun!

It seems like

he is completely looking down on me.

But…

Is he charging at him again?

He’s a one-trick pony.

You never learn, huh?

This b*stard!

I'll go get some help.

Good idea.

Now that it's come to this…

I'll see it to the end.

It’s hard to maintain my breath

while fighting inside the bathroom.

And I worked up a sweat.

Is he requesting to cease the fight?

That’s fine. The truth is,
I’ve reached my limit too.

-You worked up a sweat, huh?
-Yeah.

Is he planning to go inside
the bath like that?

Oh, what is that?

Hey!

Wait.

-You want to continue fighting--
-Wait.

Look at that.

What?

FOLLOW THE PROPER BATHING ETIQUETTE!

That's why he was mad at us?

You have to first wash yourself here.
Come and try it.

Doing this will help

to keep the bath water clean.

Take that towel off

when you go in the bath.
That also helps to keep the water clean.

It's a public bath,

so let's keep it clean.

Having a fight in the bath
is unacceptable.

We have to stop them
before someone gets hurt.

But how can we stop them…

Just please hurry up.

What a hassle.

Oh my.

Not only are they not fighting,

but everyone is also well-behaved.

I feel a sense of accomplishment.

I’m glad these people realized

that the bath water
is not to wash the body,

but it’s to calm the body and soul.

I was afraid
of what might happen at one point…

I’m so glad.

These flat-faced people

were facing the same kind
of trouble as we are in Rome,

but they used drawings
to communicate the bathing etiquette.

These unpredictable people
are always one step ahead of me…

The flat-faced people…

A WHILE LATER

Mr. Modestus, it’s all thanks to you!

Now, we can continue
our business a little longer.

These carvings that you
had your mason friend make for us,

explaining the bathing procedure
with images,

is a wonderful idea!

Thanks to this,

all of them are now bathing the Roman way.

Oh, you were an auxilia
at Seventh Corps Gemina?

I fought for Rome for 25 years.

It was a long time. I miss my motherland.

But I like Roman women.

That’s why we came to Rome.

You have taught me that I should never
give up on anything.

I also learned something new
from the flat-faced people.

Everyone must follow
the proper bathing etiquette,

in order to enjoy a relaxing
time at the bath.

Getting them to realize that,
was a big accomplishment.

Relaxing in the bath

provides so much inner peace…

Hey, Lucius!

I brought the carvings
to display in the changing room.

Thanks, Marcus!

It's reassuring to know that

the flat-faced people are experiencing
the same things as the Romans.

This is the fourth piece.

Please install it right away.

Okay.

Let's go eat some grilled chicken
once we're done.

Your grandfather and father

would've been very happy

if they saw you right now, Mr. Modestus.

I still have a lot to learn.

That's why I plan to

work even harder every day.

Hey, Lucius.

Long time no see.

Titus! It's been a while.
How have you been?

Yeah, I'm doing well.

It seems like you've gotten
used to this job, Lucius.

Somewhat. I'm glad that you're doing well.

Come on. Introduce yourself.

You're that child?

You're so big now!

It's been a long time, Mr. Lucius.

I love this bath.

You have a good eye.
Do you want to become a thermae architect?

Hey, are you scouting my son
in front of his dad?

Titus, you sure have settled down.

Oh, Titus! You're here?

Why don't the three of us go
take a bath together for old times' sake?

That's a good idea.

-I'll meet up with you guys.
-Okay.

All right!

Later.

Thermae Romae. The Hot Water Pilgrimage.

Author Ms. Mari Yamazaki,

embarked on a journey to rediscover
Japan's bathing culture.

EPISODE 8 - THE HOT SPRING'S STRONG WILL

Wow, this is incredible.

This is the Hoshi Onsen
that I've been dreaming of.

This is Hoshi no Yu.

It's amazing.

I've seen pictures of this,
but it's much more impressive and charming

when you see it in person.

Thank you.

This is a rustic bathhouse
that was built in 1895.

-1895?
-Yes.

We have preserved
this place ever since then.

The hot spring is issuing
directly into this bathtub.

That's amazing.
So it's coming up from underneath?

Yes, I can see it bubbling.

The temperature is perfect.

It would be very difficult
if the hot spring

from the source was very hot,
like around 90 degrees.

We don't heat the water,

lower the temperature, or add water to it.

The guests can enjoy
the water that is coming

directly from the source.

You can't adjust the temperature?

No.

This hot spring is in its natural form.

When you take a closer look,
you'll see that

sometimes the water is actively bubbling,
and sometimes it's very still.

It really gives you
the impression that it's alive.

Yes, it does feel like it's alive.

I feel like I'm able to
communicate with it.

It makes me wonder what
they're trying to tell me.

Yes, that's right.

Look! Did you see that?

Just as we were talking right now…

Yes, it's very…

active today.

Thermae Memoria.

Ms. Yamazaki sketched
a memorable moment from this trip.

This drawing depicts how I thought,

"I have accepted your strong will
by means of the hot spring

and the earth's grace."

I've been to many hot springs before,

but this is the first time
where I felt the water was alive.

I felt the hot spring's strong will,
here at Hoshi Onsen.

This inn is built around the concept

that the hot spring is the main character.

I think this is exactly

the kind of place Lucius is looking for.

So if a Roman like him came here,
and decided to take home

the concept of preserving
a historical hot spring

like this Hoshi Onsen…

I think that will be a good thing.

Thermae Romae. The Hot Water Pilgrimage.

Ms. Yamazaki's journey will continue
as she searches for new hot springs.