"Kotatsu" tables have a heating element under the tabletop ... Another kotatsu sled is also set up for photo-ops. Yuta Tokuhara, who visited with his family of four from the same ward, smiled ...

In this five-minute digest, we look at Kotatsu: low tables with a heat source and a quilt. For generations, people have gathered around them in the cold winter months.

MORIOKA -- A train equipped with "kotatsu" heated tables has begun operating this season on a rail line running along the coast of the northeastern Japan prefecture of Iwate. The Kotatsu Train ...

For the duration of the event, a number of the wheel’s 72 gondolas are outfitted with a kotatsu heated table, from which ridegoers can relax in the cozy warmth while admiring views of the surrounding ...