The fire crackles in the chilly winter air and they gather around the warm embers of the flame. Who are “they,” you ask? Monkeys! ...
It was cold and sunny on February 3, but many braved the chilly weather anyway for a very specific event: Setsubun. Setsubun, which is...
As January draws to a close, the preparations for the Hina Matsuri on the third of March are underway, even though it may be in...
Sometimes, traditions have hidden histories to uncover. Other times, the origins can be surprisingly obvious and yet reveal how a traditional celebration has survived...
In Western culture, we normally think of the New Year as being the one big “hurrah” between the last day of the year and the...
Kinomiya Shrine in Atami, Shizuoka Prefecture, is quite a sight at this time of year. The Shinto priestesses, already in their striking white and...
There is a dollmaker shop in Tokyo’s Naka Okachimachi neighborhood specializing in dolls that serve as charms for the good health of young boys and...
Except for the uninitiated, most everyone in Japan will know that daruma is normally a papier maché good luck doll, often about the size of...
Dried fruit. What could possibly be so special about it? It helps to know that before the Portuguese introduced sugar to the Japanese in...
In Europe, few people would be ignorant of the name of Doraemon, the manga character brought to life by the creativity of Fujiko Fujio. ...
Yoyasuyu, a public bathhouse in the Chuo ward of Kumamoto, has been temporarily decorated with illustrations of Kumamon, the adorable black bear with red cheeks...
Like a giant tree gradually stretching out its roots, Tokyo has been expanding by reclaiming land from the sea. Since the beginning of the...
