New Year's Customs
Worldwide
Worshipping at a Jinjya on
New Year's Day
Jun Yoshizawa from
Japan
We go to a Jinjya to worship
on New Year's Day. Jinja means a house of gods where we believe various
gods live (e.g., business, traffic safety, escaping from evil, and romance.
Also we worship to get our wishes.
Sometimes, we wear traditional
kimonos on these days, but recently most young men don't wear them. Many
women wear them for fashion.
We eat traditional food called
osechi and drink sake. Many women prepare osechi a few days before the
holiday. There are eggs, chestnuts, lobsters, and many unique foods of
different districts of Japan. We also eat mochi. It is made of a special
kind of rice. These days New Year's is the most famous holiday in Japan.
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