It's early December and the halls of the Western-style houses of Yamate or "The Bluff" — the former gaikokujin kyoryūchi (foreign settlement) in Yokohama — have been well and truly decked. Giving crowds of curious Japanese an inkling as to what Christmas looks like in a Western setting, the splendor of these one-time residences of diplomats from far-off lands, oyatoi gaikokujin (foreigners employed to help modernize late 19th-century Japan) and wealthy traders seems obscured by the seasonal adornments.
The decorations — selected to represent Christmas traditions of different countries — may not truly be authentic, but drawing crowds to these buildings is important for the city's heritage. Couples, families, friends, young and old, flock to admire the pine-fresh Christmassy visuals, obtain some top-notch selfies and generally indulge in a soup of light Occidentalism.
Illuminations, Polish crockery, examples of cuisine from Canada: it's all here, bringing visitors to a neighborhood of the city that, most other times of year, isn't exactly bustling with tourists. Surprising — because this, in many ways, is the birthplace of modern Japan.