Happy New Year 2012!

Japanese flower arrangement
EDAWAKAMASU(branch young pines),
 GINYANAGI(silver willow),
 KIKU(chrysanth) and SENRYO

I had not written this blog and come back to Japan for a while due to a change of my mind.  To be reported here, I have decided to alternate the studying place from Leicester to London since Jan, 2012.  There are some reasons for this decision, purposes, environment for learning, and other reasons.  All of reasons are caused by having experiences at Leicester.  However, I could have wonderful Christmas and new year's days with my family and friends in Japan.  Although Japan had terrible disasters at the recent earthquake, fortunately, I am very thankful to pass last year without any trouble.  This year, I tried to wear KIMONO which is a Japanese traditional dress.  In recent years, we are difficult to see people who wear it, because treatment and the way of wearing is difficult for young people.  They generally wear for such special occasions as special ceremonies and parties such as Coming of Age ceremony, wedding and funeral.  In some case, the beauty and fashion of kimono are being reconsidered.  Actually, I like wearing KIMONO because this style is feminin and gentle.


New year's day is special events for the Japanese, for example, we are likely to spend times with family and relations, and visit shrines to pray something such as grateful for spending in peace last year and success for studying and business new year, and have traditional New Year dishes in name of "OSECHI", and give money to children as new year's gifts.  You may know, the Japanese tend to be multi religions, some Japanese have a Christmas party and a western-style wedding ceremony in a church, a funeral in a temple, celebrate in a shrine....  I suppose that the Japanese tend to receive various customs and cultures easily because of topographical factors, i.e. islands and the end of Eurasia continent, and national identities, if those are pleasure events.  It is certain that marketing strategies would be successful for current Japanese styles.  Furthermore, excepting for the Japanese would be no nationalities having many kinds of national cuisines such as French, Korean, Thai, and other country's foods even at home.  Nowadays, we may say this custom will be one of Japanese culture, then it seems that this culture contribute to high quality Japanese restaurants.  However, we would have to consider local production for local consumption at the same time in order to reduce air pollution and develop Japanese agricultural industries.

Thank you for your reading to the end.