Tag Archives: tradition

Coming of Age Day — 成人の日

Happy Coming of Age Day! Today is a national holiday in Japan. Everyone who turned twenty in the past year gets all dressed up and goes to a big ceremony to celebrate. There’s lots of partying after, since 20 is … Continue reading

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Today’s Watercolor: Obon Cucumber Horse & Eggplant Cow

Hey guys! Wow, it’s been a crazy summer so far. Between my presentation at Otakon and the World Heritage Tour in Tomioka, I’ve barely had time to paint anything, let alone post. Luckily this weekend I finally had a chance … Continue reading

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Hina Matsuri ケーキ!

Today is Hina Matsuri! I still haven’t found any proper doll displays of ひな人形, the dolls I mentioned in yesterday’s post. I did, however, find these adorable creations at the Lawson’s by our house. Seriously, how adorable are they? It’s … Continue reading

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Graduation Ceremony! 卒業式!

Today is Graduation Day! It’s  a very big deal of course, and just a little bit confusing as I try to navigate the cultural differences between Japanese and American customs. I think I got through with only one embarrassing moment, … Continue reading

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Valentine’s Day!

It started on Thursday. Girls started appearing in the Teachers’ room with enormous shopping bags filled with smaller cellophane bags of homemade sweets. At first I thought they were trying to get a jump on the situation— perhaps bringing their … Continue reading

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Setsubun!

Today is Setsubun! Our textbook at school translates this as “The Annual Bean Throwing Festival” and states that it is to celebrate the coming of Spring. Japanese people celebrate by  throwing roasted soybeans, usually at the father of the household … Continue reading

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Lucky Bags!

One of the Japanese New Year’s traditions you may have heard of is Lucky Bags, or Fukubukuro (福袋). Basically around the start of the year, stores will take stock they want to get rid of, put it in bags, and … Continue reading

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