New Year's in Japan

Omikikuchi, a bamboo filament sake-bottle top

Japan has many customs and traditions in order to prepare for the festivities that take place on New Year's Day. They originated from the belief that a house prepared through purification and placing ornaments at its main entrance would provide a welcoming environment for visitors and good luck for the New Year. Among these preparations include include susuharai, cleaning soot from timbers under the roof, and placing shimenawa, sacred straw rope traditionally hung at the entrance of Shinto shrines, at the entrance of the home.

Another place to see these beautiful ornaments besides at people's homes is the Japan Folk Crafts Museum in Tokyo. Each year the museum hosts a New Works craft competition that receives submissions of decorations including pottery, ceramics, woven textiles, and bamboo crafts from all over Japan.

The New Works craft competition dates back to 1936, the year the museum was opened by Soetsu Yanagi.

A traditional New Year's decoration, that was also the winner of last year's competition, is the shimenawa. The rope that is the basis for shimenawa dates back to ancient times when it was believed to ward off evil spirits and hold divine powers. It was thought of to be a symbol of the boundary between the everyday world and the sacred world.

Another type of New Year's ornament found at the museum is the omikikuchi, a bamboo filament sake-bottle top. They were used to decorate the top of sake bottles, which were offered to the gods.

Many people come from all over the world to admire and collect these rare items and this year's exhibition promises to be just as breath-taking as previous years.

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The Cultures of Christmas

Commercially, Japan's take on the Christmas season is quite similar to that of the United States, from the cheerful holiday music to the beautiful decorations. However, certain traditions do differ. For example, to most families a traditional Christmas dinner usually means fried chicken with strawberry shortcake for dessert, which is eaten on December 24th.

The tradition of fried chicken originated in the 1970s when KFC launched a Christmas advertising campaign that became very successful. Fried chicken was unique enough to successfully embrace Western pop culture and was more familiar to Japanese than turkey. In most of Japan, the winter holidays do not start until December 26th, so many of the children have school on Christmas Day.

Many foreign parents in Japan have been challenged with the task of balancing Christmas traditions with their own childhood while honoring the different take that Japan has on the season. It is difficult to compete with otoshidama, New Year's money from relatives, that your children's peers receive when your relatives from other countries do not share such a tradition. It can also be difficult to explain to your child why he or she got seven or eight presents when his or her peer received only one present from santa, which is what is traditional in Japan.


The best solutions for these traditional differences is simply to learn to be flexible and embrace new traditions. Often times, the seemingly silliest things can turn into a family favorite, such as a Christmas karaoke session or watching a favorite Christmas movie as a family. 

The 63rd Annual Exhibition of Shosoin Treasures attracts Global Audience Oct 20-Nov 14

The 63rd Annual Exhibition of Shosoin Treasures will be open at the Nara National Museum through November 14th for the general public at the price of 1,000 Yen. Each year the Shosion show's average visitor numbers top that of any other Japanese exhibition.  If compared to other exhibitions around the world, it would most likely beat them too. 

The show consists of breath taking treasures dating back to 756 C.E. when Empress Komoyo donated them to Todaiji Temple. This temple, located in Nara, is famous for its massive statue of Buddha. The treasures stayed within this temple for over a millennium, remaining unscathed despite the many earthquakes, gruesome wars, and aging from time itself. Emperor Shomu, the husband of the Empress Komoyo, spent much time collecting the many treasures until his death. Grief stricken by her loss, the Empress sent the treasures away, so they would not trigger the memories of their once happy times together. 

The treasures still remain alive and cherished by many, especially during the time of October 20th to November 14th when they are open so everyone can appreciate their beauty. 

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The Arts Are Ready to Explode in China

A survey of 70,000 prospective students in 201 countries, conducted by the British Council, revealed that media studies and creative arts are becoming more and more popular among overseas students. 

These findings were most common in China. So what is driving this new trend? Students are being influenced by the huge changes in the People's Republic with the explosion of popular culture and frequent discoveries of new pop stars and artists. 

Despite the growing trend, Chinese people find it challenging to study media in their own country due to the lack of development of this subject in higher education. Chinese students are turning to Britain and the US because universities provide such programs. 

For the UK especially this is an important trend. British fashion, music, and film are also factors which spark the interest of the young Chinese population; young wealthy Chinese students are among the most fashionable. They dress with flair and love the nightlife. 

Career opportunities also play a role in the decision to receive a British or American university education. The internet is key in the inspiration, research, and final decision of where to pursue a higher education for young people.  According to Pat Killingley, the British Council's director of higher education, the internet is the number one source of information for young people, particularly China. 

The Chinese invented the Kite, becomes Popular around the World

Like many Chinese inventions, using kites became popular in other countries, where kite flying took on unique traditions and uses specific to the country.

For example, the kite's popularity spread to India years where it evolved into the fighter kite, also known as patang. Kite fighting is where participants try to snag or cut down other kites. Fighter kites are usually small, flat, flattened diamond shaped kites made of paper and bamboo. Its uses range from competitions and contests to spiritual and religious ceremonies. It is also used for military and scientific purposes. In India kites are flown at the Makar Sankranti Festival, 

(celebrated mid january), Republic Day, Independence Day, and Raksha Bandhan. 

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Fly a Kite with your Kids this Summer

How do you spend you family time during the summer?  Outside enjoying the weather? Have you built or flown a kite with your friends and family before? My kids and I love kites and the feeling of joy we have when we are running behind them watching them dip and fly in the sky. We went out and flew some kites over the holiday and felt inspired to research and understand kite flying.

Did you know the kite influenced the creation of the airplane? Wow! Kites are just as popular today as they were when our ancestors created them. Weifang, Shandong, China is home to the largest kite museum in the world. Weifang 

also hosts an annual international kite festival on the large salt flats south of the city. Weifang is very famous for its dragon kites today. China is not the only country celebrating with kites anymore as it has become a beloved tradition in many countries!

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July 4th Fireworks - Begins with the Chinese

One of the first things you think about when thinking of the 4th of July is fireworks. Fireworks have been a longstanding tradition used to celebrate the independence of our country, but they have their importance in other countries as well. Did you know the chinese were actually some of the first to produce and use fireworks? In the Han Dynasty (206-220 BC) it is said that bamboo would be roasted to produce a loud sound used to scare away ghosts and other evils. In the Northern and Southern Dynasties (420-581 AD) these sounds were also used to pray for happiness and prosperity. At the end of the Northern Song Dynasty the first paper tube crackers, filled with gun powder, were created. 

The export of fireworks began with Paozhuang, a private trading company, in the mid 1800s. Today, there are five bases of firework production existing in China: Liuyan, Beihai, Pingxaing, Jianghu, and Donguan. There are few countries throughout the world that do not import chinese fireworks. Like their ancestors, people in China today set off fireworks to express happiness and peace. Fireworks play a significant role in festivals and holidays such as Chinese Lunar New Year and China National Day. They are also used for other occasions such as weddings and birthdays. 

So next time you think of fireworks, think of China and the traditions fireworks have deeply rooted 

within chinese culture! 

See pictures of Chinese Lunar New Years Fireworks