ONE: Gift Giving
In the United States, people of all ages give and receive presents throughout the month of December, with the bulk of presents being given on Christmas day. The Christmas gift tradition is very different in Japan. Children typically only receive one gift from Santa Claus, one or two gifts from their grandparents, and usually no gifts from their parents. Children are not expected to get their parents gifts and many stop receiving gifts all together around the age of 14. Many families don't have have a Christmas tree, so the children wake up to the gift from Santa Claus left by their bed. Some families have started implementing Christmas trees however it's not common.
TWO: Christmas Coca Cola
One of the most 'kawaii' things about Christmas in Japan is the coca cola. If you follow anyone on social media that lives in Japan, you know that the label can turn into a bow. Rumor has it that each of the bows are unique. I wanted to test that theory. Watch this video to see the verdict!
In order to make your coke bow, all you have to do is pull the label back (the corner is labelled) and pull the white tab. As the tab gets unravelled, the label crinkles up into a bow. To keep the bow in place you wrap the tab back around the bottle.
I wish that I could mail some of these to friends and family in the United States so that they could experience these cute bottles!
THREE: KFC Christmas Dinner
You read it right! Every Christmas millions of families in Japan participate in a nationwide tradition of ordering KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken) for their holiday dinner. It's not as simple as walking in to KFC on Christmas and ordering your dinner. These Christmas meals have to be ordered weeks in advance! My husband and I ordered our meal for Christmas Day, the week after Thanksgiving.
According to this source , this tradition began in the 1970s when the first store manager of KFC in Japan, Takeshi Okawara, heard customers talking about how they were missing turkey for the holidays. This sparked the idea for the "party barrel". Your order can be added to but your main order comes with fried chicken (of course!), a Japanese Christmas Cake, and... wine!
What is Japanese Christmas cake? Japanese Christmas cake is another Japanese holiday tradition that is eaten on Christmas Eve. Just like the KFC, you have to order these weeks in advance. The famous 7-11 Japan even has a deadline for the last day to order Christmas cakes! I missed the 7-11 boat this year but plan on getting one from there next year.
FOUR: The Most Romantic Day of the Year
Here in Japan, Christmas Eve is considered more romantic than Valentine's Day! Christmas is considered less of a religious celebration than it is a time of happiness and quality time with loved ones. On Christmas Eve, couples will often exchange gifts with each other, have reservations at expensive restaurants, or splurge on expensive staycations. If you don't have reservations, and are hoping to go out to dinner on Christmas Eve, it's unlikely that you will get a table at a nice restaurant.
FIVE: Lantern Festivals & Christmas Lights
There are plenty of Christmas lights, decorations, and lantern festivals around Japan in December. Here in Okinawa it's definitely interesting to go see holiday decorations while it's so warm, but it's all beautiful nonetheless.
Some places you can go experience lights in Okinawa are:
The Ryukyu Lantern Festival Murasaki Mura
Southeast Botanical Gardens
American Village
Many of the 'lights' that you go and see are not explicitly Christmas lights, but are still festive and will get you in the holiday spirit.
In the United States, you'll often see Christmas lights up through New Years, and sometimes even past then. Religiously, Christmas decorations stay up until Epiphany (the last day of the 12 days of Christmas). In Japan, the lights don't stay up nearly that long. You will actually see decorations begin to come down on the evening of Christmas Day! Beginning December 26th
Whether you're celebrating Christmas with family, having a quarantined holiday, or living overseas away from family & friends, I hope that you find a way to make your Christmas cozy and merry!
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