Hey there everyone, and happy December!<\/p>\n
Can you believe it? It\u2019s December 2023 already! Not only that, as of this writing, it\u2019s already December 12th, so it will be even later by the time you\u2019re reading this. Where did the time go?<\/p>\n
Honestly, it feels like only yesterday when it was the middle of September, Japan was still having sweltering heat, and I was eagerly awaiting the anticipation of my partner back in Japan. Well, her arrival was back in October, and it\u2019s been more than 2 months already.<\/p>\n
Now, we\u2019re getting ready to head to Canada to celebrate Christmas with my family, and then we\u2019re planning a little winter getaway to some sunnier southern climes.<\/p>\n
But, I\u2019m getting ahead of myself!<\/p>\n
Happy holidays, and I hope you’re all enjoying the holiday season. I know that Christmas isn’t a traditional holiday in Japan, but what with Japan\u2019s tradition of celebrating a wide range of holidays, and making holidays into nondenominational celebrations, I think it\u2019s a great time of year to be in Japan.<\/p>\n
My students have sent me pictures from around Japan, showing the country decorated for the time of year.<\/p>\n
While Japan doesn’t traditionally celebrate Christmas, I think it\u2019s fair to say that Japan does a great job of making Christmas their own. I\u2019ve seen a wide range of impressive light displays from Tokyo, and even rural areas like my neighbourhood have put up a few small, quaint decorations. Even if you\u2019ve never seen a reindeer, chances are that you can see a lit-up version somewhere around where you live this time of year.<\/p>\n
Similarly, even if your area isn’t prone to snow over winter, I\u2019m sure you can see a few sparkling snowman somewhere around you too, be it in a shop or in public.<\/p>\n
For my family\u2019s tradition, we don\u2019t have anything too special. Instead, Christmas is truly a time for family.<\/p>\n
As I live outside of Canada, and my sister lives on the opposite side of Canada from our hometown of Vancouver, Christmas is one of the few times where the entire family gathers in one place. In addition, my mother is from the US (my father is Canadian). So, we always travel down to the US (my American relatives are only an hour and a half drive or so away) and visit my aunt, uncle, and cousins. Christmas is truly a time for family for us. We also invite my dad\u2019s side of the family over, with our aunts and cousins from that side.<\/p>\n
This year, our schedule is going to be a bit different. Normally, we do all our celebrating on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, but that has got a bit hectic the past couple years. So, we\u2019re just going to celebrate whenever we want. It\u2019s truly going to be a Christmas \u2018week\u2019, or maybe make it 2!<\/p>\n