Celebrating Christmas in Japan
Celebrating Christmas in Japan.
TFor the most part, Christmas is just another day in Japan except for the secular influence. Santa Claus is alive and well in only that he promotes gift giving = keeping the retail stores abuzz.
In the 20 some years I was in Japan, I worked every day. Christmas is not a holiday at all in Japan. And the foreigners there find it a lonely time of year.
On Christmas, westerners want to be with family but Japanese want to party. On New Year's Eve, westerners want to party and Japanese want to be with family. Go figure. The East is indeed far from the West.
Christmas Eve is a time for Japanese lovers to:
1. exchange gifts,
2. have a special date
3. stroll under Christmas lights
4. go to parties
Christmas decorations in stores come down on the 25th and are replaced by New Year's decorations.
Japanese who celebrate Christmas at all do it with a Christmas cake – a white whipped cream cake with strawberries. They look much prettier than they taste.
Japan's current emperor, Akihito, was born on December 23. That makes that day a national holiday. Christmas is not.
How will you celebrate Christmas?
