I'm sorry that it's been over two months now since my last post... I have a lot to get you caught up on, but that's going to have to wait until January. So the Christmas season has been in full swing here in Japan for awhile now. Decorations went up around Kanazawa right before Halloween. I thought things started too early in America, but I think Japan is even quicker on the draw! It’s interesting to me that they celebrate Christmas at all since only about 2% of the country’s population say they are Christian. It’s a purely commercial holiday. The Christmas “traditions” here include eating fried chicken and Christmas cake with strawberries. Most people seem surprised when you tell them that’s not what we eat on Christmas in America. I’m not sure how their fried chicken tradition started, but there’s speculation that it’s because Colonel Sanders looks suspiciously like Santa.
I’ve started getting into the holiday spirit as well. I found some Christmas decorations (and old cards) that my predecessors left. Some friends and I decorated my apartment the weekend after Thanksgiving. My favorite decoration is the photo card from a family that I don’t know! (You may not be able to see it very well, but it's to the left of the tree.)
On Saturday night, a big group of JETs went caroling at the train station to raise money for a little girl who needs an operation. I spent the rest of the weekend baking cookies... way too many cookies... I've spent the last few days eating cookies... way too many cookies...
The weekend before last was filled with holiday activities as well. Two of my friends work at an after-school program with elementary kids and needed volunteers to sing carols in English with the kids at a local hospital. The kids were cute and it was fun to sing. As a bonus, the teachers threw a party for us with lots of delicious food and ume-shu (plum wine… mmm…). We also got our first snow that day along with some loud thunder! The snow was more like mini snowballs than flakes though and it didn’t stick around for very long. It was long enough to put me in a festive mood though!
At school, we’ve been making Christmas cards and letters in class and having Christmas-themed activities. One of the 8th grade classes made Christmas cards for me as a surprise. Here are a few of my favorites:
Looks like I have a bit more work to do...
Yes, that says "Peace on English". Awesome!
I think this one is my favorite because it's so bizarre. Not sure if you can read it or not, but smoking Santa is asking how old I am. Here's a closer look at Santa and his dirty habit:
Tomorrow night I’m off to spend the winter holiday in Vietnam and Hong Kong. I’m traveling there with my friends Kate and Katherine. Winter vacation doesn’t actually start until 12/26, (yes, there’s school on Christmas as it’s not an official holiday here) but I’m taking several days off. We’ll be in Vietnam for Christmas (12/19-12/30) and Hong Kong for New Year’s (12/30-1/2). It’s supposed to be in the 80s in Vietnam, so I’m not counting on a white Christmas. I’ll be thinking of all of you at home and I hope you enjoy the holiday season!!! Peace on English!
