The national standard: Why the Japanese school bag is a six-year sled
Have you ever seen the Japanese elementary school bag, the Randoseru? It’s a national standard in color, size, and design—a six-year commitment. Let’s call it the Ransel (from the Dutch Ransel) for convenience. When I was a kid, over 30 years ago, it was strictly black for boys and red for girls. It cost a fortune—about $500 then—but the quality was non-negotiable, built to survive super-rough usage.
You might assume that meant carrying books. Wrong. The Ransel’s true purpose was as multi-functional winter gear:
- A Soft Suitcase: Perfect for sitting on when having long, boring chats with friends on the way home.
- A Personal Sled: We’d wear it on our front and take a head-first dive down a snow-covered hill, competing for the longest slide, thanks to its smooth, rigid surface.
- A Structural Building Block: The key to our most coveted winter game: the snow igloo.
The fact that these expensive, highly engineered bags always looked worn and battered by the sixth grade is a perfect metaphor for the Japanese concept of durability being tested to its absolute limit.
The paradox of powder: Why Hokkaido snow is too good for igloos
The snow igloo was simple: gather six friends (and six Ransels). Pile the bags up three-two-one, cover them with snow, pack the snow firm by beating it, and then pull out the Ransels one by one, leaving a perfect structural shell.
Here is the ultimate paradox of Hokkaido winter: Our famous snow is too good for this game. Hokkaido’s intensely cold climate yields Sarasara (powdery) snow that is absolutely useless for forming compact snowballs or building anything requiring structural integrity. While this “Champagne Powder” is why skiers and snowboarders fly here from around the world, it was the bane of my childhood fun. We had to use so much water to make it stick.
The adult world, of course, has solved this problem. Professionals now use heavy machinery and specialized techniques to build the beautiful, temporary snow and ice structures you see everywhere here in winter.
The translucent beauty: Ice hotels and the unforgettable drink
One of my favorite adaptations is the La Vista Ice Bar, an actual bar built entirely of translucent ice that operates only in winter. It’s illuminated with colorful lights, transforming the humble ice into a beautiful, glowing lantern. The highlight is the ice glass—your drink is served in a container crafted from ice, giving you a taste of the most fleeting form of luxury.
Even more ambitious was the limited-time “Ice Star Hotel,” where you could actually stay overnight in an ice igloo. Yes, the bed was ice, but fear not: this is still a hotel. They provided thick, warm blankets, and naturally, attention was paid to the interior design—our furniture was installed there, contrasting the warmth of crafted wood against the cold, clear ice.
I sincerely hope, with the return of global tourists, that such fleeting, brilliant expressions of our winter landscape—from the humble, snow-beaten Ransel to the glittering ice bar—will return and thrive. You must come and experience the beauty that only our “too good” snow can create.
Photo credit: https://storyweb.jp/lifestyle/102108/
Shungo Ijima
He is travelling around the world. His passion is to explain Japan to the world, from the unique viewpoint accumulated through his career: overseas posting, MBA holder, former official of the Ministry of Finance.