Crane is not the national bird of Japan, but it is often shown as an image of Japan together with cherry blossoms and Mt. Fuji. Orizuru is a paper crane that is made from origami. Almost all Japanese people can make orizuru without looking at the instructions. I think most of us make it as a school activity. If you love Japan and you think you know a lot about Japan, then you should definitely know how to make orizuru (^_<)～☆
I offer origami classes. Please contact me for details.
The 3rd of November is a national holiday in Japan. It is called “Bunka No Hi” or “Culture Day”. This day is dedicated to freedom & peace in Japan and to promote Japanese culture. November 3rd is the birthday of the Meiji emperor (11/3/1852) and is also the day that Japan’s revised constitution was officially announced (11/3/1946). It has been a national holiday since 1948. On this day the entry fee for many museums is either free or discounted and many places hold a special event that is related to Japanese art, music, films, etc.
The official unit of Japanese currency is the yen. One dollar is equivalent to 112 yen as of 10/10/18. The idea of Japanese currency was greatly influenced by China. In China certain type of shells were used as currency before coins were invented. Today, as in the past, some Japanese coins have a hole in the middle, and it is believed that this is a remainder of those shells that also had openings (see the photo). In Japan today there are six types of coins (1, 5, 10, 50, 100, & 500 yen) and 4 types of bills (1,000, 2,000, 5,000, and 10,000 yen). The bill for 2000-yen is not common, but you may come across one from time to time, I guess it is just like the two-dollar bill in the U.S.
Today Doraemon is well-known not only in Japan but also worldwide. Most people who have watched this anime already know that Doraemon is a robot cat that has tons of fantastical gadgets and helps a 4th grader boy, Nobita who is somewhat slow and goofy. They also know that Doraemon came from future and that he is scared of mice because his ears were eaten by them. But most people probably don’t know the following trivia. Doraemon’s height (in cm), weight (in kg), bust, waist, and hip (all in cm), foot length (in mm), running speed when chased by a mouse (in km/h), and the height of his jump when he sees a mouse (in cm) are all 129.3 and his birthday is September 3rd, 2112. However, I am sorry to say that there is no special meaning to the number “129.3” except that it was the average height (in cm) of Japanese 4th graders when Doraemon first came out in 1969.
The second Monday in October is a holiday in Japan. Of course it’s not “Columbus Day”. It’s called “Taiiku no Hi (体育の日)” or “Health and Sports Day”. This holiday started in 1966. It used to be the 10th of October because the Tokyo Olympic opening ceremony was held on 10/10/1964, but in 2000 Japan started incorporating the American holiday system and changed the holiday from the 10th of October to the second Monday in October. This holiday is dedicated to growing healthy minds and bodies by playing sports. Of course you should exercise more than just once a year. lol
“Kuru fuku” means “a coming good fortune”, and this is what people hope for from a maneki-neko. Since Japanese people associate the sound of “ku” with the number nine (9) and “fu” with two (2), while “ru” is just an extra sound, the words “kuru fuku” can be represented as 9ru 29 or 9-29. Therefore, the Association for Manekineko Japan has established September 29th as Maneki-Neko Day (招き猫の日). Some communities and/or businesses host special programs or festivals on this day.
When you see a Japanese drawing of the moon, do you notice rabbits are often drawn with the moon? Do you know the name of the girl who turns into Sailor Moon? Her name is “Tsukino Usagi” and that means “rabbits in the moon”. Why rabbits? If you ask this question to any Japanese person, then they will all tell you about the rabbits in the moon. If you love Japan and want to be Japanese, then you need to know about them too. Lol. Look!
(Some people say there is only one rabbit in the moon, but that sounds too lonely to me. I want to believe there are two rabbits)
Traditionally Otsukimi or the moon-viewing event is held on August 15th based on the old lunar calendar. But it actually falls on different dates depending on the year since we use the solar calendar now. This year, 2018, Otsukimi falls on September 24th. The full moon is actually the 25th. Obviously, the lunar calendar is based on the moon, so 15th of each month is supposed to be the full moon. However, the calendar is not perfect, and in some months a 1~2 day gap can occur.
The kaleidoscope was invented by Scottish scientist David Brewster in 1817. By 1819, the kaleidoscope had already been imported to Japan and was so popular that in Osaka fake ones were being produced and sold. In Japan kaleidoscope is still popular and is considered as one of the traditional Japanese toys. It is called mangekyō in Japanese.
The yukata is an ordinary summer kimono for both men and women of any age. It’s inexpensive and you can probably find a low-priced set of yukata including both obi belt and geta shoes for $30~$40 in Japan.
