lioness in japan

This winter is so dry in Tokyo that it actually makes my skin feel prickly, my lips chapped, my poor cuticles peel from lack of humidity. This happens just when I thought I got the hang of it all.

Actually I wasn’t sure if the parched air was the problem and I actually thought I was coming down with stomach flu. I had bad headaches for two days and never-ending nausea, which killed this foodie’s appetite.

But I met up with some friends and they assured me what I was feeling was normal. My Japanese friends were so cute in listing out all the ways to keep warm and the air humid during a bitter winter.

*Sleep with two duvets and a beanie if it’s truly icy.
*Get an electric blanket.
*Wear socks to bed.
*Use a gas-powered heater, not electric.
*Leave your ofuro (bath) undrained so the air will remain moist.
*Cooking often warms up the apartment.
*Invest in a humidifier.

Since I realized it was just a humidity problem, I hung wet towels and put out bowls of water but the dryness still lingered and it made working in the apartment very uncomfortable.

With a scratchy throat and painfully dry lips (yes, I used lip balm), the tropical gal in me whined inwardly as I headed off to Biccamera in Yurakucho. I was amazed how crowded the humidifier section was in the mid-afternoon on a weekday. Men and women snatched moist-making machines of all sizes. There were tiny personal desktop ones to huge industrial gadgets that need two strong men to carry.

I settled on an energy-saving Panasonic humidifier that cost 12,800JPY.

It took a while for the air in my apartment to hydrate, but once it did, my skin immediately felt the difference. I cannot believe I waited a week to make this decision!

The buttons were real easy to read. I needed my dictionary for the microwave, though. Feeling smug and snug now.

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