January 18, 2006
Christmas in Fukushima
Seasons greetings (or as we say in Japan: Merry Christmas!). Unlike in the West, and most of the world for that matter, people here do not worry too much about being politically incorrect with regards to religion. The Japanese (less than 1% are Christian) have adopted Christmas as a type of children's festival where it has become the custom to eat at KFC followed by strawberry shortcake at home! They are oblivious to its religious significance.
The Japanese New Year, however, is a lot like Christmas back home in that families get together to eat traditional food and also visit their local shrine or temple. It is also a time when parents and grandparents give little envelopes of money known as "toshidama" to the children. This, of course, is followed by a trip to the nearest TOYS R US!!
Below are photos of Santa's visit to our kindergarten Christmas party on December 22nd. And YES, what you see on the ground is snow!!
