After that was over we shopped and took a ton of pics. First we went to a kind of shopping mall called IMS-it was decorated for Christmas!! This is a round shopping mall so most of the decorations can be seen from every part of the mall!
After I took the pictures of the Christmas decorations, we went upstairs to the atrium (floors 12-14) for lunch and took more pictures because it is so beautiful!
We ate fab Indian food!! Then we went walking around to our favorite places and of course, many places were decorated for Christmas. This Iwataya store had giant Christmas cakes in front.
The front of this shop was beautiful in pink.
This shop had many decorations for sale. In one of the displays is a reindeer with a note from Santa, in Japanese, not to feed the deer!
My honey put these pics up on another site and someone wrote that they hope to spend Christmas in Japan one day and I just have to respond to that comment. My first thought....don't. Yes, the decorations are pretty but it isn't Christmas like we in Canada or the States are used to. I can't speak for all North Americans but Christmas is more than 1 day which Japanese kind of think it is. There is a build up in Canada....decorating the outside of your house, decorating the tree with your family (and if you are like my family...decorating your whole house including bathrooms! ^__^). There are cookies to bake, cookie exchanges to go to. Kid's Christmas plays and parties. Adult parties.Shopping for gifts in stores that are decked out and with Christmas music playing. Wrapping the gifts. Hiding the gifts so little ones don't find them. Advent calendars to open....counting down to the big day! Going to the mall to have your children's picture taken with Santa. Christmas cards to send. Laying out the stockings for Santa to fill. Leaving carrots and sugar cubes for the reindeer and cookies and milk for dad...I mean Santa ^__^. If you are religious then you have other activities to signify that Christmas is coming. Then there is the big day itself with the family gathering, presents to open, turkey to eat, eggnog to drink etc. There is such a build up to it and it just isn't here in Japan. I totally understand why-it isn't their culture and that is ok. I have to say when I do go home for Christmas I appreciate it all that much more!!
My honey put these pics up on another site and someone wrote that they hope to spend Christmas in Japan one day and I just have to respond to that comment. My first thought....don't. Yes, the decorations are pretty but it isn't Christmas like we in Canada or the States are used to. I can't speak for all North Americans but Christmas is more than 1 day which Japanese kind of think it is. There is a build up in Canada....decorating the outside of your house, decorating the tree with your family (and if you are like my family...decorating your whole house including bathrooms! ^__^). There are cookies to bake, cookie exchanges to go to. Kid's Christmas plays and parties. Adult parties.Shopping for gifts in stores that are decked out and with Christmas music playing. Wrapping the gifts. Hiding the gifts so little ones don't find them. Advent calendars to open....counting down to the big day! Going to the mall to have your children's picture taken with Santa. Christmas cards to send. Laying out the stockings for Santa to fill. Leaving carrots and sugar cubes for the reindeer and cookies and milk for dad...I mean Santa ^__^. If you are religious then you have other activities to signify that Christmas is coming. Then there is the big day itself with the family gathering, presents to open, turkey to eat, eggnog to drink etc. There is such a build up to it and it just isn't here in Japan. I totally understand why-it isn't their culture and that is ok. I have to say when I do go home for Christmas I appreciate it all that much more!!
4 comments:
Aw, I wish that malls in the States were beautiful like that! Those plants, cake decorations, and lights are so cool!
And I love that deer sign: "don't feed the deer". That's so cute! :)
I didn't know that Japanese people only regard Christmas as a one day event. That stinks! Here in the US, we're already listening to Christmas music and buying decorations, even though it's not even Thanksgiving yet, hahaha ^_^
Hi,
There are decorations and music but there isn't the big day like we have in North America. People...all people work on Christmas (unless it is a Sunday)as it isn't a holiday. Children might get one present but that's it. Oh and lovers have a romantic dinner so that is all the meaning it has...it isn't family time (that is New Year's day for Japanese). No one really exchanges presents etc. Oh and they take down all the Christmas decorations on Christmas day!
I'm not a Xmas fan so one day of Xmas would be fine for me lol I wish the decoration here looked like that. In lots of places here they look like they were put up by someone's drunk uncle Bob :p (these are the town decorations :/)
wow
That shop is so beautiful outside with these pink big cakes <3
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