Search - christmas-japan

 
 
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Dec 21, 2002

You call that twig a Christmas tree?

The Japanese have adopted Christmas with great zeal, in the same manner they have adopted other Western things such as Snoopy and Disney. The holiday -- with glittery trees, sparkly lights and fairy-tale songs -- is irresistible to the Japanese. This, along with the "If it blinks I want it!" mentality,...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / Fiction
Dec 15, 2019

Christmas on Happy Road: Escape from Shibuya

Chapter 1
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / WILD WATCH
Dec 18, 2011

There's more to Christmas colors than meets the eye

The rotenburo (outdoor hot spring) that I most regularly frequent creates an excellent illusion of there always being a full moon bathing in its glow those soaking beneath.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Dec 14, 2007

A sleighload of ways to savor the taste of Christmas

Only 1 percent of Japan is Christian. Luckily the rest of the country is happy to pilfer the fun parts of a jolly old festival season. So whether you're celebrating the prophet or the presents, and whether Christmas means eggnog, panettone or foie gras, Japan's chefs have cooked up some delectable holiday...
EDITORIALS
Dec 7, 2003

Christmas in Japan

It's the end of the first week of December, which means the odd annual festival of Christmas in Japan is once again in full swing. In fact, it's inescapable: bells ringing, carols tinkling, lights twinkling, shoppers jostling, cakes a-baking everywhere you look.
LIFE / Food & Drink / BEST BAR NONE
Dec 23, 2001

Finding the Christmas spirit (and ale)

Christmas was once a lonely business for an expat in Japan. With no holiday, no family and everyone who could manage it having already left town, it was downright dismal -- even for a seasoned Japan-hand.
Japan Times
Events / Events In Tokyo
Nov 28, 2013

Roppongi Hills shows that 'tis the season

In Medieval times, farmers and tradesmen in Christian European countries would celebrate Advent — the anticipation of the "arrival of the Christ" — by meeting in the streets around churches with food, gifts, homemade crafts and singing. According to written records, the first gathering like this...
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Dec 20, 2005

Ho, ho, homesick

Santa's checkin' his list twice to see who's been naughty or nice and foreigners from all corners of the world are wishing their stockings will be filled with things they can't find in Japan.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / OLD NIC'S NOTEBOOK
Nov 30, 2013

Christmas in Japan is only lonely if you let it be

Fifty-one years have rushed by since I first spent a winter in Japan, and 33 years since I first spent a Christmas and New Year in Kurohime, northern Nagano Prefecture. We got our first snows in early November, but at the time of writing, although the mountain peaks are dusted with white, the snow around...
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Dec 4, 2014

Designers illuminate us on their winter wonders

When you think of Japanese art forms, many cultural pursuits will come to mind. The grace of ikebana, perhaps, or the beauty of ukiyo-e woodblock prints. At this time of year it becomes clear, though, that holiday lighting displays — referred to simply as "illumination" — are where the country's...
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Dec 24, 2006

Ongoing Vietnam tragedy revives ghosts of a Christmas past

Christmas brings to mind many wonderful memories for most of us. But history has bequeathed to some of us a most awful little two-word phrase blackening those memories like a stain. That phrase is "Christmas bombing."
CULTURE / Music / HIGH NOTES
Dec 19, 2001

Asylum Street Spankers: Live in Europe 2001 & A Christmas Spanking

If you're one of those people who never buys Christmas albums because they're not cost-effective, then you're probably sick of the Como/Sinatra/Elvis collections. However, a trip to the record store in search of something new will likely result in disappointment. Destiny's Child? Kenny G? Michael Bolton?...
Japan Times
Places
Nov 12, 2014

Let there be LIGHT — Christmas illuminations in Japan

When it comes to the imported tradition of Christmas-time illuminations, the ante is being raised each year in Japan. Naturally, they’re often the grandest near shopping areas. The illuminations are usually put in place around November, and kept up until the New Year, while some are left on display...
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel / HOTELS & RESTAURANTS
Nov 14, 2013

Amenities for Muslim guests; 'Sparkling' menus by Tokyo Bay; Advance orders for Christmas cakes

Amenities for Muslim guests
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / VIEWS FROM THE STREET
Dec 22, 2009

What is the perfect way to spend Christmas?

COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WHEN EAST MARRIES WEST
Dec 20, 2008

Remembering the ghost of a Christmas past

I prefer this season not as one of tinsel, lights and storefront carols, but rather as one of quiet — a season of soft-falling snow, a season of anticipation, a season of memories.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / OLD NIC'S NOTEBOOK
Dec 3, 2008

Oh, no: It's not a Christmas pud

The Christmas season may be grinding ever closer, and the creation in the photograph below is almost the right color and shape, but it's most certainly not a Christmas pudding.
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Nov 28, 2008

Kansai's many Christmas highlights

Streets in the Kansai region have already started to sparkle with the cheerful spirit of the season. Yes, the Christmas and New Year's holidays are coming around soon. Here are some ideas on where you can get into a jolly, festive mood.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language
Dec 24, 2018

Going back and forth with the language of giving and receiving in Japanese

It's that time of year when thoughts turn to プレゼント (purezento, presents) — 何をあげるか (nani o ageru ka, what to give), いつあげるか (itsu ageru ka, when to give it), and how will it affect the relationship between giver and receiver?
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel / HOTELS & RESTAURANTS
Nov 15, 2018

Christmas lunch buffet awash in pink decadence

Pink pastries and jewelry boxes may not evoke the most classic of Christmas imagery, but who's to say things can't get a little creative sometimes? In the spirit of giving girly girls what they really want this season, Hilton Tokyo Odaiba Hotel happily presents its Girls' Sweets Coffret Christmas Dessert...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS
Dec 12, 2015

Santa Paradise Yamamoto: 'Pursue what you love ... be a Santa if you want'

Japan's authorized Santa Claus on gyoza dumplings, mambonsai and mysterious footprints in the snow
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel / HOTELS & RESTAURANTS
Dec 15, 2016

Buon Natale: Italian-style Christmas

COMMUNITY / Voices / FOREIGN AGENDA
Dec 23, 2015

On a Christmas visit, expat thoughts turn to 'going home'

Reconnecting with home can be a cause for reflection: Where have I been, and where am I going? Is there another life to return to?
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS
Dec 21, 2013

Santa Claus: 'It's what's on the inside that counts'

After finishing my route on Christmas Eve once, I was feeling exceptionally genki (energetic) and I rode back to the North Pole au naturel. The reindeer never even knew.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / Fiction
Dec 26, 2019

Christmas on Happy Road: The Passion of the Franz

Chapter 4
The classic Japanese ghost story often features a vengeful female ghost.
PODCAST / deep dive
Oct 12, 2023

[Rebroadcast] Japan’s got ghosts

This week we discuss a few horror movies before “Uncanny Japan” podcast host Thersa Matsuura tells a classic Japanese ghost story.
"The Ones Left Behind" documents the successes and struggles of single mothers in Japan.
PODCAST / deep dive
Nov 2, 2023

Why single mothers in Japan have been left behind

Filmmaker Rionne McAvoy joins us to discuss the hidden poverty present in one of the world’s richest nations.
While harsh comments from older generations can sometimes be seen as rude, consider instead that they’re often trying to teach us something they hold on to.
LIFE / Lifestyle
Dec 26, 2023

A survival guide for your first Japanese-style at-home New Year’s

Meeting your partner’s Japanese family for the New Year’s holidays? Here are some do’s and don’ts for an ‘oshōgatsu’ success story.
Tokyo Union Church volunteers prepare food for unhoused individuals. The church helps people regardless of religion, race or sexuality.
COMMUNITY / Issues / The Foreign Element
Dec 16, 2024

From the stage to the streets, make a difference this holiday season

Discover the joy of giving back through a variety of charitable efforts. Helping others helps you, too.
Yoshiaki Nakano (center), head of the Mebuki residents’ association, comprising residents of the Moniwa No. 2 municipal-run housing complex in Sendai’s Taihaku Ward, addresses a board meeting on Feb. 2.
JAPAN / Society / Regional Voices: Tohoku
Mar 10, 2025

Public housing residents' associations in Sendai struggle to find leaders

Those age 65 and older account for 43.9% of the residents in such housing, 18.7 percentage points higher than the ratio of elderly in the city.

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji