Japan is a fascinating and favourite country to visit. Not only Japan has many famoust tourist places start from modern city like Tokyo until historical imperial city Kyoto, but also Japan is the center of fashion and wearing style in Asia.

As one of the biggest economic growth country in the world, Japan become the target for businessmen to visit. Before we plan to visit Japan, it is better if we know its public holiday date.

The holiday date is important for those who want to travel and doing some business in Japan. While holiday, the tourist sites of course will be more crowded as well as the fares will be counted as high season fare.

Japan have 15 official holidays in a year. But most of the holidays are based from traditional occassions. The most important holiday may be New Year’s day which start from 1st January, and usually last until the 3rd, and many business re-open on the 4th or 5th.

It is a suprise that Christmas is not the public holiday in Japan. 25th December is a working day, and many business are open, although many Japanese are celebrating Christmas as a festival not as a religious occassion.

Chinese New Year in Japan

Japan once was under Chinese imperial, and due to their close location, some Japanese festivals have their roots in Chinese festivals but have undergone dramatic changes as they mixed with local customs.

The best place to watch Chinese new year celebration in Japan is in Yokohama Chinatown.

It is this destination that celebrates the Chinese New Year with full enthusiasm. From Dragon Dances to Lion Dance Blessings, Yokohoma treats you with all the traditional events that form a part of the Chinese New Year. The dance performers from the Lion Dance troop entertain and thrill the viewers with “tsai qing” style of dance. During and after the performance, the dancers collect “hong pao” from the various shops of Chinatown. These “hong pao” are money kept in red colored envelops or packages.

Chinese New Year traditions in Japan:

As a part of the Chinese New Year celebration in Japan, the year 2011 will also see mass participation in various traditions. Some of the traditions followed during this time are:

Otoshidama:

Otoshidama, Japanese Angpao

Otoshidama is an important tradition, where children are given money in envelops. This tradition is same like the custom followed by the Chinese during Chinese New Year. The money is placed in beautiful envelops, which are also known as ‘pochibukuro’. Envelops are same like Goshugi, which are used during the Chinese New Year. In olden days though, a mochi bag w as accompanied by Mandarin oranges, which were meant to spread joy.

Mochi:

Having ‘mochi’ on the New Year is yet another tradition, which is widely followed in the country as a part of the New Year celebrations. Rice cake s are prepared out of the sticky stalk of boiled rice and eaten to begin the New Year. Kagami Mochi is further prepared from Mochi as a part of the New Year decoration. Mochi’s sticky nature makes it hazardous for health. Several deaths are reported as a result of Mochi consumption.

Chinese New Year at Yokohama Chinatown

The Chinese are everywhere in the world. They often build Chinatown and make their living on their own. In 1858, Japan opend its door to other countries. Port of Yokohama was opened in the following year. Various countries created their settlements there. The Chinese too moved to Yokohama as the translator and broker between the Japanese and the Westerners. As their number grew, they built their own town here. Chinatown collapsed after the Great Kanto Earthquake in 1923, and the WWII discouraged their economic activity thoroughly. Since the war ended, Chinatown recovered gradually. It became the touristic site for the Japanese when diplomatic relations were established between China and Japan. Nowadays, it is more like a commercial site for tourists rather than for the Chinese immigrants.

Shunsets (Chunjie in Mandarin) is the celebration of Chinese New Year. Because they use the lunisolar calendar, the Chinese celbrate a different date than the Westerners and the Japanese. It was Febryary 18 in 2007, and will be February 7 in 2008 and January 26 in 2009. On the eve, they have countdown party. At midnight, they explode bakuchiku (firecracker) which gets rid of devils as the Chinese believe.

Chinatown also shows a performance of Chinese dance as well as lion dance during the shunsets season. Shishimai (lion dance) was changed a lot and adopted by the Japanese culture. However, here you can see the original dance by the young Chinese who communicate with each other during their performance in the perfect shape in Japanese.

Annual Nagasaki Lantern Festival in Nagasaki, Japan

Lion dance at Yokohama Chinatown

Chinese temple at Yokohama Chinatown

Watch Lion dance during Chinese New Year in Yokohama Chinatown Video here

Donburi may be not as famous as Sushi, Sashimi, ramen, or Teriyaki. But Donburi ingredient actually is the main food for some people in Japan even Asia.

Donburi is a typical Japanese rice bowl dish. Donburi consists of a bowl of hot cooked rice on top of which you put various fish, meats and/or vegetables.

The most famou donburi may be Oyako Donburi (chicken and egg over rice). Because the topping is chicken and eggs, this dish is called “oyako” which means parent-and-child in Japanese. It’s a delicious one dish meal to have for lunch or dinner.

Some of the possible varieties include:
- Yakitori donburi, rice topped with pieces of grilled chicken
- Tempura donburi, rice topped with deep-fried prawns (shrimp)
- Katsu-don, rice topped with breaded pork cutlets
- sashimi donburi, rice topped with pieces of raw fish and other seafood
- Unagi donburi, rice topped with pieces of broiled eel
- Guy-don, rice topped with sukiyaki style beef
- Oyako-donburi, rice topped with cooked chicken and green onions which have been blended with eggs.

Some of popular Donburi and photos :

Oyakodon (Oyako Donburi) =  Mother and Child Donburi
The name of this popular donburi dish comes from its two main ingredients, chicken and egg. Very rarely, you may also encounter an Oyakodon featuring salmon and ikura (salmon eggs).

Katsudon (Tonkatsu Donburi) = Pork Cutlet Donburi
Katsudon is served with tonkatsu (deep fried breaded pork cutlet), egg and onions on top of the rice.

Gyudon (Gyuniku Donburi) = Beef Donburi
Gyudon, a bowl of cooked rice with beef, is very popular as an inexpensive type of fast food served at chain stores across the country.

Tendon (Tempura Donburi) = Tempura Donburi
Tempura are deep fried pieces of battered seafood and vegetables. Various tempura pieces are dipped into a soya based sauce before served on top of the rice.

Unadon (Unagi Donburi) = Eel Donburi
The eel is grilled and prepared in a thick soya based sauce before served on top of the cooked rice.

Tekkadon (Tekka Donburi) = Tuna Donburi
The topping of Tekkadon is raw tuna (maguro). It is served with strips of nori seaweed and sometimes ground yamaimo.

How to make Japanese Oyako Donburi Video

Japan School Girls Uniforms are very famous nowadays and have turned into a fashion style. Today Japan Girls are not only wearing the school uniforms on the school, but also still wear it on the street as a fashion icon.

Japanese school girls love their school uniforms, and they normally wear them after school as well as at weekends. Wearing a school uniform to go shopping is almost mandatory in Japan .In Japan it’s also common to see schoolgirls on trains and buses. School girls can often face a long commute to and from school. Commuting time is usually used to catch up on home work or to sleep. In Japan sleeping on trains is very common!

As a fashion, Japan School Girl uniforms have evolved a lot. We can mixed the uniforms with another accessories. Usually a girl can either buy a complete school uniform for leisure wear, or buy mix-and-match pieces to assemble a custom seifuku.

Japanese Sailor Uniform

A typical Japanese schoolgirl would have a short skirt, blouse with what is called the sailor collar (think Sailor Moon!) and long loose socks.

Japanese school girls often wear plaid skirts in a variety of patterns. Tartan patterns are very popular. Needless to say, girls like their skirts to be very short!

Japan School Girl Uniform Sailor model Black Colour

Japan School Girl Uniform Sailor model White Colour

Buy Japanese School Girl Uniform

A place and website which is very recommended to buy Japanese School Girl uniform is Conomi. We can find so complete school uniform outfit, start from skirt, bag, cardigan, sweater, shirt, ribbon, necktie, socks, until sailor uniform. Another website is cecile which sell online retail.

Japanese School girl in anime and cosplay

Japanese school girl uniform is very popular not only for the fashion but also in anime and cosplay outfit. The cute and sexy things out from the outfit are the selling point from the uniform. Don’t forget many Japan Girls are beauty and has an innocent pure face, thus make it so perfect in wearing the uniform. The schoolgirl image may appeal to women because it allows them to project a more youthful, innocent, or virginal image.

School Uniforms now turn into a fetish item. Various style of school uniform are widely used in Japan Otaku (idol) culture and Japan Adult industry. A lot of anime, manga, and dojinshi also featuring characters in sailor uniform.

Azumi Harusaki Japan Gravure Idol in uniform

Japan Idol Kyoko Fukada in School Uniform

Japan Sexy model Leah Dizon stunning her beauty in uniform

Watch Japanese School girl uniform video here