Starting this thread off with an excerpt from:
http://en.rocketnews24.com/2013/11/06/10-things-japan-gets-horribly-wrong/
Now that Halloween has come and gone, Japan is already switching to Christmas mode. Shop-fronts are being decorated with tinsel, trees are popping up in hotel lobbies, and you’ll find a plastic Colonel Sanders dressed in a Santa outfit outside many branches of KFC in the city. But for the build-up and affection for the festive season Japan seems to have, when it comes to actually delivering, Christmas here is pretty awful.
Since this is not a Christian country, Christmas Day is just another working day in Japan, so you won’t hear of many families getting together to exchange gifts first thing in the morning, or spending the afternoon sitting by the tree sipping on wine and eggnog. In fact, after December 24 – which is considered to be one of the biggest days of the year for romance and dating – everyone pretty much forgets about the season.
That is, of course, except for “Christmas Dinner”, which since the 1970s has become almost completely synonymous with Kentucky Fried Chicken. That’s right, boys and girls, Japan replaces the biggest and best roast dinner of the year with a family-sized bucket of the colonel’s finger-lickin’ chicken, with even hamburger chains like Japan’s own MOS Burger serving only chicken on the big day, and sometimes taking orders well in advance. Sure, there’s no rule set in stone saying that everyone in the world should eat roast turkey and stuffing on December 25, and fried chicken with the family can be a ton of fun, but after explaining to a Japanese friend of mine that Kentucky for Christmas is to Westerners what presenting a Japanese family with a round of Big Macs instead of traditional New Year’s food on January 1 would be like, they agreed that Kentucky Fried Christmas is probably pretty depressing for foreigners.
from:
http://gizmodo.com/japanese-christmas-light-displays-are-simultaneously-ab-1483628019
In south Japan, Mie prefecture is rocking 7 million LED Christmas lights. Hence the awesome light tunnel above. "Illuminations" or Christmas light displays have been a big deal in Japan since the 1980s. But there's something a lot more contemplative about these lights compared to some of the spectacles in the U.S..
Kanagawa prefecture has 4 million bulbs on display and the Sagamiko amusement park there stays open later so people can enjoy them. The scenes seem less frantic and more peaceful than the record-breaking displays we normally see. Looking at these subdued Christmas lights really takes the edge off of unnecessarily aggressive holiday cheer.
An excerpt from:
http://www.japantoday.com/category/arts-culture/view/the-true-meaning-of-japanese-christmas
It’s December again in Japan, and that means that Christmas trees are sprouting up outside store fronts while festive advertisements of cakes adorn the trains and convenience stores across the land. The usual mercilessly repetitive jingles that fill department stores and supermarkets are replaced with mercilessly repetitive carols for this one special month.
However, not everyone can share in the festive joy of a Japanese Christmas filled with hallowed traditions such as fried chicken and bowling. Christmas in Japan is also a day for lovers, and as of 2011 it was estimated that over 60% of young men and women would be single for the holidays and that number certainly hasn’t appeared to have changed recently.
Another short excerpt from:
http://www.punipunijapan.com/japanese-christmas-cakes/
With Christmas coming up soon, are you curious to know what Japanese people do for Christmas? Japanese people usually celebrate Christmas by eating a delicious クリスマスケーキ (kurisumasu kēki – Christmas cake)!
http://en.rocketnews24.com/2013/11/06/10-things-japan-gets-horribly-wrong/
Now that Halloween has come and gone, Japan is already switching to Christmas mode. Shop-fronts are being decorated with tinsel, trees are popping up in hotel lobbies, and you’ll find a plastic Colonel Sanders dressed in a Santa outfit outside many branches of KFC in the city. But for the build-up and affection for the festive season Japan seems to have, when it comes to actually delivering, Christmas here is pretty awful.
Since this is not a Christian country, Christmas Day is just another working day in Japan, so you won’t hear of many families getting together to exchange gifts first thing in the morning, or spending the afternoon sitting by the tree sipping on wine and eggnog. In fact, after December 24 – which is considered to be one of the biggest days of the year for romance and dating – everyone pretty much forgets about the season.
That is, of course, except for “Christmas Dinner”, which since the 1970s has become almost completely synonymous with Kentucky Fried Chicken. That’s right, boys and girls, Japan replaces the biggest and best roast dinner of the year with a family-sized bucket of the colonel’s finger-lickin’ chicken, with even hamburger chains like Japan’s own MOS Burger serving only chicken on the big day, and sometimes taking orders well in advance. Sure, there’s no rule set in stone saying that everyone in the world should eat roast turkey and stuffing on December 25, and fried chicken with the family can be a ton of fun, but after explaining to a Japanese friend of mine that Kentucky for Christmas is to Westerners what presenting a Japanese family with a round of Big Macs instead of traditional New Year’s food on January 1 would be like, they agreed that Kentucky Fried Christmas is probably pretty depressing for foreigners.
from:
http://gizmodo.com/japanese-christmas-light-displays-are-simultaneously-ab-1483628019
In south Japan, Mie prefecture is rocking 7 million LED Christmas lights. Hence the awesome light tunnel above. "Illuminations" or Christmas light displays have been a big deal in Japan since the 1980s. But there's something a lot more contemplative about these lights compared to some of the spectacles in the U.S..
Kanagawa prefecture has 4 million bulbs on display and the Sagamiko amusement park there stays open later so people can enjoy them. The scenes seem less frantic and more peaceful than the record-breaking displays we normally see. Looking at these subdued Christmas lights really takes the edge off of unnecessarily aggressive holiday cheer.
An excerpt from:
http://www.japantoday.com/category/arts-culture/view/the-true-meaning-of-japanese-christmas
It’s December again in Japan, and that means that Christmas trees are sprouting up outside store fronts while festive advertisements of cakes adorn the trains and convenience stores across the land. The usual mercilessly repetitive jingles that fill department stores and supermarkets are replaced with mercilessly repetitive carols for this one special month.
However, not everyone can share in the festive joy of a Japanese Christmas filled with hallowed traditions such as fried chicken and bowling. Christmas in Japan is also a day for lovers, and as of 2011 it was estimated that over 60% of young men and women would be single for the holidays and that number certainly hasn’t appeared to have changed recently.
Another short excerpt from:
http://www.punipunijapan.com/japanese-christmas-cakes/
With Christmas coming up soon, are you curious to know what Japanese people do for Christmas? Japanese people usually celebrate Christmas by eating a delicious クリスマスケーキ (kurisumasu kēki – Christmas cake)!
