No chestnuts roasting on the open fire here. No, just wood burning in our wood stove.It’s been chilly/cool/cold lately, and when it’s cloudy outside and there’s no sunshine to help warm the house (radiant heat) the house cools off inside. I’m often much colder in Japan than I have ever been while living in Canada. It gets really cold in winter in Canada, especially where I’m from (Winnipeg). But with central heating everywhere, double-paned windows, double doors and so on the interiors of buildings are quite warm. Contrast that with Japan where many of these items are not used and the interiors are just a bit warmer than outside.

The traditional heating in Japan for winter is the kotastu which is a table that has a heavy blanket under it and a heater under the table. The kotatsu is a low table and one sits on the floor, not using a chair. The blanket covers one’s lower region and helps trap the heat from the heater. All in all it is a great feeling, cool at the top, warm at the bottom. It encourages blood circulation, keeping the body warm, yet doesn’t use that much energy. The problem for me is that my back gets sore because of the seating style and the room doesn’t warm up. So, unless you stay under the kotatsu you will be cold.

Our house has a wood stove that heats the house. We designed the house to all the heat from the wood stove to heat the whole house and it almost does that. The classroom is separated from the rest of the house by a door, and when the door is closed, so is the heat. Ours isn’t a perfect design but it does work well. It’s nice to be able to walk almost anywhere and be comfortable.

Warm wishes to you.