Winter is here, and although this has been a relatively mild one so far, any winter is a cold when you’re from San Diego like me. Happily, Japan has some innovative ways of keeping warm, for example curling up in a kotatsu — the low tables with a blanket over the top and a heater inside you’ve probably seen in anime — with some mikan oranges and a good book. When out and about, I like to carry one of those Japanese kairo pocket heaters, cloth packets that contain some kind of magic sand that stays toasty for hours in your pocket — I recommend you give them a try. If you don’t have one handy, you can keep warm by buying a hot canned coffee from a vending machine and hold it in your hands, or else go to a convenience store and get one of those steaming nikuman meat buns, such a treat in the colder months. When it’s time for bed, many Japanese use water bottles called yutanpo to keep the bed toasty all night long, and naturally the Japanese make cute plush versions.
Some unique ways to keep warm in Japan.
