John Yamamoto-Wilson wrote:

 >
 > Oh, you are a wag! But there are people who were born here and lived
 > all their lives here who earnestly testify to the truth of the above,
 > my merry prankster!
 >
 > I've never been to a sentou myself, so I really couldn't say whether
 > people wash off more consistently in the sentou than in the hot
 > spring.

In my experience it really depends on the person. If the guy is going 
there to relax, then he treats it like an onsen and *maybe* puts some 
water over his privates. But if he's going to wash off (which is, I 
suppose, the point of sentou) then he does that. But I'd say 
overwhelmingly men treat the sentou just like an onsen, which is to say 
they pour on a little water, hit the steam room and baths, and then wash 
thoroughly. I even saw a guy in a health club do this, which I found a 
bit disgusting considering I had watched him run on the treadmill and 
then lift weights.

Once in a Korean sentou I found in the bath something that can only be 
described as poop. That was the last trip to small sentou in Korea.

John W.