Atamiyu

The low, wooden storefront of Atamiyu sits in Shinjuku, easily identified by the traditional noren curtains hanging over the entrance. This is one of the few remaining sento, or public bathhouses, in a district now defined by neon skyscrapers and dense urban redevelopment. Built in the late nineteen fifties, the bathhouse kept the communal bathing culture alive for neighbors long after most of the city transitioned to private home baths. A hand-painted mural of Mount Fuji stretches across the back wall of the bathing area.