Impressions of daily life in Japan
Coming of Age Day (seijin no hi) is a Japanese holiday held on the second Monday of January. It is a great day for kimono spotting. In day-to-day life in Japan, it is rare to see people in kimono. On Coming of Age Day, however, you will see them everywhere. Coming of Age Day celebrates... Continue Reading →
Around New Year's time, you will see special decorations outside shops and in temples all over Japan. For foreigners, these public decorations are very interesting. Since we often don't have access to Japanese family life, the decorations put up by shops and temples are the best (and often only) way for us to learn about... Continue Reading →
In Japan, it is customary to send out New Year's cards, or 'nengajou'. While in the West, traditional Christmas and New Year's cards are gradually being replaced by electronic versions and e-mails, in Japan cards are still being sent through the mail (which I quite like). New Year's cards are big business in Japan. Every... Continue Reading →
Yesterday was Pocky Day. It is a Japanese 'holiday' that celebrates the snack Pocky. The reason that the 11th of November was chosen as Pocky Day, is because the date consists of lots of 1's, which are of course shaped like Pocky. What is Pocky? It's a crunchy biscuit stick covered with chocolate. This is... Continue Reading →
It was quite exciting to spend New Year in Japan. I was very curious about Japanese New Year rituals and we tried participating in as many as possible. Our Japanese New Year experience began on New Year's Eve with a popular TV show called 'Kōhaku Uta Gassen' (on the channel NHK). It features spectacular performances... Continue Reading →
For New Years Eve dinner we decided to make 'yosenabe', a simmered dish containing many different ingredients. It was a first so I was a little worried how it would turn out. But overall I'm very happy with the result. Real wholesome winter food!
The Japans 