As extreme heat hammers the globe, one traveller discovers a wealth of cooling solutions, from

high-tech underwear to ancient philosophies, on a journey round Japan.

When our iPhones alerted us that the temperature had crept past 37C, we paused. Every sun-
drenched step outside felt like we were wagyu steaks sizzling on the grill. Was honeymooning
in Japan in July – one of its hottest, most humid months – really a good idea?

From Osaka to Kobe to Kyoto, my wife Erin and I planned every day with one goal: avoid
melting into puddles. Around us, hordes of tourists were in the same sweaty boat. But a few
days in, I noticed something. The locals looked noticeably cooler, less crabby, more
comfortable. Why?

The answer should come as no surprise. Japan, a nation renowned for its design thinking and
innovation, is armed with a fistful of ways to survive punishing heat. While they love air-con as
much as the next heat-stricken country, they also find respite in creative remedies, from
electrically ventilated clothes to water-based rituals.

Solutions like these epitomise a nation where ancient traditions fuse with hyper-modern cities
reaching endlessly towards the future. Here's six ways that locals cope with extreme heat.

The Japanese concept mono no aware reminds us that all things are beautiful, fleeting and
temporary – even sweltering heat (Credit: Andia/Alamy)

The Japanese concept mono no aware reminds us that all things are beautiful, fleeting and
temporary – even sweltering heat (Credit: Andia/Alamy)

Zen spaces, Zen mindset

You could see it in every tourist's eyes as they fanned their sweaty faces: I want out of the sun,
now. In times like this, a Japanese concept is a useful balm. Mono no aware can perhaps best
be summed up in the phrase "this too shall pass", the notion that all things are beautiful,
fleeting and temporary – even sweltering heat. In an interview with the South China Morning
Post, Tokyo-based journalist Richard Lloyd Parry, who wrote a book about the 2011 Japanese
tsunami, theorised that exposure to extreme weather has moulded Japan's national character.
Earthquakes, punishing seasons, typhoons – "all this has bred a deep strain of fatalism or
acceptance [in the Japanese psyche]".
If achieving the ever-accepting state of mono no aware seems unachievable in high
temperatures, be like a local and head to a real Zen space. In Kyoto, the Heian Jingu Shrine
garden is a literal breath of fresh air. Shaded by maple and cherry trees and ribboned by a cool
pond, the park feels like a door to a calmer dimension. Its centrepiece is the aptly named
Bridge of Peace, whose dark, creaking eaves are filled with hundreds of furin glass chimes.
Often dotted around temples as a symbol of protection against evil, the ringing notes of furin
act as a gentle reminder of cool winds. Surrounded by these chimes, with fat koi swimming
lazily in the water below, I can attest that their sound felt like respite.

Fashion: Ultra-baggy and fan-powered

Whether in baking street markets or Shinto shrines, tourists cope by shedding layers. Singlets,
crop tops and shorts became our way of recognising fellow visitors. Conversely, many locals
were swathed in cloth. Yuri Cath, who was raised in Yokohama, explained that apart from
allowing air to circulate around your limbs freely, loose clothes are a nod to the country's
conservative fashion mores. "It's still frowned upon to wear revealing clothing in Japan," Cath
said, "so people get creative with cooler layering, while still looking stylish."

Look out for jackets fitted with battery-powered fans (Credit: Yoshikazu Tsuno/ Getty Images)

Look out for jackets fitted with battery-powered fans (Credit: Yoshikazu Tsuno/ Getty Images)

It's also worth picking up a few clothes from Uniqlo, a fashion brand beloved in Japan and
abroad. They have an innovative line called AIRism, made from thin fabric that wicks sweat and
dries quickly. I bought no fewer than four AIRism boxers on the honeymoon, and count those
thin, silky purchases as my best souvenirs.

Three Japanese products to help you stay chilled

Cooling sunscreen

Walk down Japan's pharmacy aisles and you'll be met with an Aladdin's Cave of sprays, foams
and sticks that keep you cool and UV-ray safe. Look out for the Cool UV Spray from a brand
called Ishizawa.

Iced neck rings

Hugely popular in Japan, you just stick one in the fridge before you go and it keeps you cool on
the move. Take your pick from brands, which offer rings that are cheap, stylish and everything
in between.
Shaved ice machines

Cheap, cooling, adaptable for any flavour – shaved ice desserts (think mounds of pebble-sized
ice drizzled in fruit or sauce) are popular in Japan and much of southeast Asia. Many
households still use the old mechanical ice-shaver; travellers can spring for snazzier handheld
models that are perfect for picnics.

Meanwhile, I enviously eyed Japanese men who strolled past in tobi trousers (think MC
Hammer's parachute pants, but even baggier). Tobiwere originally worn by construction
workers who favoured them as the billowing fabric kept you cool.

Want something more high-tech? On sun-baked intersections, we saw crossing guards clad in
what looked like bulky jackets and winced in sympathy. Turns out we were misguided: those
jackets come with powerful built-in fans that, when the jacket is zipped, create a kind of closed-
loop system of coolness.

Salty solutions

You can't walk a block in Japan without stumbling over a vending machine, and while bottles of
water are welcome, one drink truly hits the spot. Pocari Sweat may not have the most
attractive English name, but its mix of electrolytes, originally inspired by the makeup of an IV
solution, is (according to their website at least) designed to rehydrate you faster. All I can say is
the cool, tangy liquid felt like a lifesaver at high noon.

More than one Japanese friend credits Pocari's popularity to their advertising prowess. When
temperatures rise, the brand kicks into high gear. In 2014, they even placed heat-sensitive
branded stickers at bus stops that turned red when the thermometer passed 30C.

If there's no nearby vending machine, duck into to a ubiquitous convenience store. As you
savour the air-con, pick up a bag of salt plum candies – a treat to suck on while replenishing
your sodium levels.

The sports drink Pocari Sweat is hugely popular in Japan and across Asia (Credit: Chris
Willson/Alamy)

The sports drink Pocari Sweat is hugely popular in Japan and across Asia (Credit: Chris
Willson/Alamy)

Speak the language of summer

Not surprisingly, Japan has built an entire vocabulary around heat. There is a practicality to this
shared language. If someone tells you tomorrow's weather will be kokusho (intense heat
around 35C), then you'll dress accordingly. If they say it will be hot but bearable, thanks to a
kunpuu (summer breeze), better still. Or if you suffer from natsubate, summer exhaustion, and
want to hunker on your couch chugging Pocari Sweat, there's a name for that activity too:
shokibarai (roughly: "cheering the mind and body to dispel the heat").

Speaking of shokibarai, Cath says that in the summer, many TV channels here show endless
reruns of horror films. There is a belief, she explained, in the literal "chilling" power of movies
that send shivers down your spine. "I love it," sighed Cath, "though I always regret watching
them afterwards."

It's no coincidence ghost stories fill screens each summer: Obon, an ancient festival honouring
deceased loved ones, is held in August. During this time, it's thought that the dead temporarily
walk the Earth once more. As extreme heat hammers the globe, one traveller discovers a
wealth of cooling solutions, from high-tech underwear to ancient philosophies, on a journey
round Japan.

When our iPhones alerted us that the temperature had crept past 37C, we paused. Every sun-
drenched step outside felt like we were wagyu steaks sizzling on the grill. Was honeymooning
in Japan in July – one of its hottest, most humid months – really a good idea?

From Osaka to Kobe to Kyoto, my wife Erin and I planned every day with one goal: avoid
melting into puddles. Around us, hordes of tourists were in the same sweaty boat. But a few
days in, I noticed something. The locals looked noticeably cooler, less crabby, more
comfortable. Why?

The answer should come as no surprise. Japan, a nation renowned for its design thinking and
innovation, is armed with a fistful of ways to survive punishing heat. While they love air-con as
much as the next heat-stricken country, they also find respite in creative remedies, from
electrically ventilated clothes to water-based rituals.

Solutions like these epitomise a nation where ancient traditions fuse with hyper-modern cities
reaching endlessly towards the future. Here's six ways that locals cope with extreme heat.

The Japanese concept mono no aware reminds us that all things are beautiful, fleeting and
temporary – even sweltering heat (Credit: Andia/Alamy)
The Japanese concept mono no aware reminds us that all things are beautiful, fleeting and
temporary – even sweltering heat (Credit: Andia/Alamy)

Zen spaces, Zen mindset

You could see it in every tourist's eyes as they fanned their sweaty faces: I want out of the sun,
now. In times like this, a Japanese concept is a useful balm. Mono no aware can perhaps best
be summed up in the phrase "this too shall pass", the notion that all things are beautiful,
fleeting and temporary – even sweltering heat. In an interview with the South China Morning
Post, Tokyo-based journalist Richard Lloyd Parry, who wrote a book about the 2011 Japanese
tsunami, theorised that exposure to extreme weather has moulded Japan's national character.
Earthquakes, punishing seasons, typhoons – "all this has bred a deep strain of fatalism or
acceptance [in the Japanese psyche]".

If achieving the ever-accepting state of mono no aware seems unachievable in high

temperatures, be like a local and head to a real Zen space. In Kyoto, the Heian Jingu Shrine
garden is a literal breath of fresh air. Shaded by maple and cherry trees and ribboned by a cool
pond, the park feels like a door to a calmer dimension. Its centrepiece is the aptly named
Bridge of Peace, whose dark, creaking eaves are filled with hundreds of furin glass chimes.
Often dotted around temples as a symbol of protection against evil, the ringing notes of furin
act as a gentle reminder of cool winds. Surrounded by these chimes, with fat koi swimming
lazily in the water below, I can attest that their sound felt like respite.

Fashion: Ultra-baggy and fan-powered

Whether in baking street markets or Shinto shrines, tourists cope by shedding layers. Singlets,
crop tops and shorts became our way of recognising fellow visitors. Conversely, many locals
were swathed in cloth. Yuri Cath, who was raised in Yokohama, explained that apart from
allowing air to circulate around your limbs freely, loose clothes are a nod to the country's
conservative fashion mores. "It's still frowned upon to wear revealing clothing in Japan," Cath
said, "so people get creative with cooler layering, while still looking stylish."

Look out for jackets fitted with battery-powered fans (Credit: Yoshikazu Tsuno/ Getty Images)

Look out for jackets fitted with battery-powered fans (Credit: Yoshikazu Tsuno/ Getty Images)

It's also worth picking up a few clothes from Uniqlo, a fashion brand beloved in Japan and
abroad. They have an innovative line called AIRism, made from thin fabric that wicks sweat and
dries quickly. I bought no fewer than four AIRism boxers on the honeymoon, and count those
thin, silky purchases as my best souvenirs.
Three Japanese products to help you stay chilled

Cooling sunscreen

Walk down Japan's pharmacy aisles and you'll be met with an Aladdin's Cave of sprays, foams
and sticks that keep you cool and UV-ray safe. Look out for the Cool UV Spray from a brand
called Ishizawa.

Iced neck rings

Hugely popular in Japan, you just stick one in the fridge before you go and it keeps you cool on
the move. Take your pick from brands, which offer rings that are cheap, stylish and everything
in between.

Shaved ice machines

Cheap, cooling, adaptable for any flavour – shaved ice desserts (think mounds of pebble-sized
ice drizzled in fruit or sauce) are popular in Japan and much of southeast Asia. Many
households still use the old mechanical ice-shaver; travellers can spring for snazzier handheld
models that are perfect for picnics.

Meanwhile, I enviously eyed Japanese men who strolled past in tobi trousers (think MC
Hammer's parachute pants, but even baggier). Tobiwere originally worn by construction
workers who favoured them as the billowing fabric kept you cool.

Want something more high-tech? On sun-baked intersections, we saw crossing guards clad in
what looked like bulky jackets and winced in sympathy. Turns out we were misguided: those
jackets come with powerful built-in fans that, when the jacket is zipped, create a kind of closed-
loop system of coolness.

Salty solutions

You can't walk a block in Japan without stumbling over a vending machine, and while bottles of
water are welcome, one drink truly hits the spot. Pocari Sweat may not have the most
attractive English name, but its mix of electrolytes, originally inspired by the makeup of an IV
solution, is (according to their website at least) designed to rehydrate you faster. All I can say is
the cool, tangy liquid felt like a lifesaver at high noon.
More than one Japanese friend credits Pocari's popularity to their advertising prowess. When
temperatures rise, the brand kicks into high gear. In 2014, they even placed heat-sensitive
branded stickers at bus stops that turned red when the thermometer passed 30C.

If there's no nearby vending machine, duck into to a ubiquitous convenience store. As you
savour the air-con, pick up a bag of salt plum candies – a treat to suck on while replenishing
your sodium levels.

The sports drink Pocari Sweat is hugely popular in Japan and across Asia (Credit: Chris
Willson/Alamy)

The sports drink Pocari Sweat is hugely popular in Japan and across Asia (Credit: Chris
Willson/Alamy)

Speak the language of summer

Not surprisingly, Japan has built an entire vocabulary around heat. There is a practicality to this
shared language. If someone tells you tomorrow's weather will be kokusho (intense heat
around 35C), then you'll dress accordingly. If they say it will be hot but bearable, thanks to a
kunpuu (summer breeze), better still. Or if you suffer from natsubate, summer exhaustion, and
want to hunker on your couch chugging Pocari Sweat, there's a name for that activity too:
shokibarai (roughly: "cheering the mind and body to dispel the heat").

Speaking of shokibarai, Cath says that in the summer, many TV channels here show endless
reruns of horror films. There is a belief, she explained, in the literal "chilling" power of movies
that send shivers down your spine. "I love it," sighed Cath, "though I always regret watching
them afterwards."

It's no coincidence ghost stories fill screens each summer: Obon, an ancient festival honouring
deceased loved ones, is held in August. During this time, it's thought that the dead temporarily
walk the Earth once more.

As extreme heat hammers the globe, one traveller discovers a wealth of cooling solutions, from
high-tech underwear to ancient philosophies, on a journey round Japan.

When our iPhones alerted us that the temperature had crept past 37C, we paused. Every sun-
drenched step outside felt like we were wagyu steaks sizzling on the grill. Was honeymooning
in Japan in July – one of its hottest, most humid months – really a good idea?
From Osaka to Kobe to Kyoto, my wife Erin and I planned every day with one goal: avoid
melting into puddles. Around us, hordes of tourists were in the same sweaty boat. But a few
days in, I noticed something. The locals looked noticeably cooler, less crabby, more
comfortable. Why?

The answer should come as no surprise. Japan, a nation renowned for its design thinking and
innovation, is armed with a fistful of ways to survive punishing heat. While they love air-con as
much as the next heat-stricken country, they also find respite in creative remedies, from
electrically ventilated clothes to water-based rituals.

Solutions like these epitomise a nation where ancient traditions fuse with hyper-modern cities
reaching endlessly towards the future. Here's six ways that locals cope with extreme heat.

The Japanese concept mono no aware reminds us that all things are beautiful, fleeting and
temporary – even sweltering heat (Credit: Andia/Alamy)

The Japanese concept mono no aware reminds us that all things are beautiful, fleeting and
temporary – even sweltering heat (Credit: Andia/Alamy)

Zen spaces, Zen mindset

You could see it in every tourist's eyes as they fanned their sweaty faces: I want out of the sun,
now. In times like this, a Japanese concept is a useful balm. Mono no aware can perhaps best
be summed up in the phrase "this too shall pass", the notion that all things are beautiful,
fleeting and temporary – even sweltering heat. In an interview with the South China Morning
Post, Tokyo-based journalist Richard Lloyd Parry, who wrote a book about the 2011 Japanese
tsunami, theorised that exposure to extreme weather has moulded Japan's national character.
Earthquakes, punishing seasons, typhoons – "all this has bred a deep strain of fatalism or
acceptance [in the Japanese psyche]".

If achieving the ever-accepting state of mono no aware seems unachievable in high

temperatures, be like a local and head to a real Zen space. In Kyoto, the Heian Jingu Shrine
garden is a literal breath of fresh air. Shaded by maple and cherry trees and ribboned by a cool
pond, the park feels like a door to a calmer dimension. Its centrepiece is the aptly named
Bridge of Peace, whose dark, creaking eaves are filled with hundreds of furin glass chimes.
Often dotted around temples as a symbol of protection against evil, the ringing notes of furin
act as a gentle reminder of cool winds. Surrounded by these chimes, with fat koi swimming
lazily in the water below, I can attest that their sound felt like respite.

Fashion: Ultra-baggy and fan-powered

Whether in baking street markets or Shinto shrines, tourists cope by shedding layers. Singlets,
crop tops and shorts became our way of recognising fellow visitors. Conversely, many locals
were swathed in cloth. Yuri Cath, who was raised in Yokohama, explained that apart from
allowing air to circulate around your limbs freely, loose clothes are a nod to the country's
conservative fashion mores. "It's still frowned upon to wear revealing clothing in Japan," Cath
said, "so people get creative with cooler layering, while still looking stylish."

Look out for jackets fitted with battery-powered fans (Credit: Yoshikazu Tsuno/ Getty Images)

Look out for jackets fitted with battery-powered fans (Credit: Yoshikazu Tsuno/ Getty Images)

It's also worth picking up a few clothes from Uniqlo, a fashion brand beloved in Japan and
abroad. They have an innovative line called AIRism, made from thin fabric that wicks sweat and
dries quickly. I bought no fewer than four AIRism boxers on the honeymoon, and count those
thin, silky purchases as my best souvenirs.

Three Japanese products to help you stay chilled

Cooling sunscreen

Walk down Japan's pharmacy aisles and you'll be met with an Aladdin's Cave of sprays, foams
and sticks that keep you cool and UV-ray safe. Look out for the Cool UV Spray from a brand
called Ishizawa.

Iced neck rings

Hugely popular in Japan, you just stick one in the fridge before you go and it keeps you cool on
the move. Take your pick from brands, which offer rings that are cheap, stylish and everything
in between.

Shaved ice machines

Cheap, cooling, adaptable for any flavour – shaved ice desserts (think mounds of pebble-sized
ice drizzled in fruit or sauce) are popular in Japan and much of southeast Asia. Many
households still use the old mechanical ice-shaver; travellers can spring for snazzier handheld
models that are perfect for picnics.

Meanwhile, I enviously eyed Japanese men who strolled past in tobi trousers (think MC
Hammer's parachute pants, but even baggier). Tobiwere originally worn by construction
workers who favoured them as the billowing fabric kept you cool.
Want something more high-tech? On sun-baked intersections, we saw crossing guards clad in
what looked like bulky jackets and winced in sympathy. Turns out we were misguided: those
jackets come with powerful built-in fans that, when the jacket is zipped, create a kind of closed-
loop system of coolness.

Salty solutions

You can't walk a block in Japan without stumbling over a vending machine, and while bottles of
water are welcome, one drink truly hits the spot. Pocari Sweat may not have the most
attractive English name, but its mix of electrolytes, originally inspired by the makeup of an IV
solution, is (according to their website at least) designed to rehydrate you faster. All I can say is
the cool, tangy liquid felt like a lifesaver at high noon.

More than one Japanese friend credits Pocari's popularity to their advertising prowess. When
temperatures rise, the brand kicks into high gear. In 2014, they even placed heat-sensitive
branded stickers at bus stops that turned red when the thermometer passed 30C.

If there's no nearby vending machine, duck into to a ubiquitous convenience store. As you
savour the air-con, pick up a bag of salt plum candies – a treat to suck on while replenishing
your sodium levels.

The sports drink Pocari Sweat is hugely popular in Japan and across Asia (Credit: Chris
Willson/Alamy)

The sports drink Pocari Sweat is hugely popular in Japan and across Asia (Credit: Chris
Willson/Alamy)

Speak the language of summer

Not surprisingly, Japan has built an entire vocabulary around heat. There is a practicality to this
shared language. If someone tells you tomorrow's weather will be kokusho (intense heat
around 35C), then you'll dress accordingly. If they say it will be hot but bearable, thanks to a
kunpuu (summer breeze), better still. Or if you suffer from natsubate, summer exhaustion, and
want to hunker on your couch chugging Pocari Sweat, there's a name for that activity too:
shokibarai (roughly: "cheering the mind and body to dispel the heat").

Speaking of shokibarai, Cath says that in the summer, many TV channels here show endless
reruns of horror films. There is a belief, she explained, in the literal "chilling" power of movies
that send shivers down your spine. "I love it," sighed Cath, "though I always regret watching
them afterwards."

It's no coincidence ghost stories fill screens each summer: Obon, an ancient festival honouring
deceased loved ones, is held in August. During this time, it's thought that the dead temporarily
walk the Earth once more.