Even though we don't have a major holiday season like Thanksgiving or Christmas, I guess we have too many seasonal events. Today is
Hinamatsuri. "Doll's Festival" this is a day to wish girls live happily. It's the day for girls. Of course, there is a day for boys in May. Families with girls display
these freaking cold eyed so real oh scary dolls. You don't really play around with them as they are very fragile and expensive. These dolls are my sister's at my parents'. Strangely, my family really cares about every single seasonal event like this one. So I had to have special breakfast at my parents' as I couldn't be there tonight. Everything is pink today. Even
Sushi. You know I am gay but I really didn't play with girly dolls. I was more like a
gundam pretty boy. I am a
boy (okay, I saw you laughing). I had to attend the family gathering this morning... I, of course, wore a pink shirt to celebrate this girly day and felt pretty and girly inside. My sister didn't seem to care about my pretty shirt at all.... But seriously, these dolls are kinda scary if you look at them at night. When I was little, I always tried not to look at them directly just like the sun light.... So this is the day to celebrate with dolls. I am not sure what these dolls intend to do by holding a thing or two though....
For those who happen to believe there are still Samurais here in Japan,
we don't dress like these dolls anymore in the 21st century unfortunately. Sorry, Japnaese strange fantasizers... Anyway, you have a fantabulous weekend! FRIDAY! YAY!
i do wish that i could try some of the very delicious looking dishes you linked to. my experience of japanese cuisine has been, regrettably limited. alas, i have to make do with regular plain old north american cuisine. dull.
A girl lived next door to me when I was just a small boy. She had Barbie dolls and I had GI Joe dolls. We used to make the two dolls have sex. Until her mother caught us.
I think your very non-girly (and very manly) shoulders (see previous blog with your pic) would look fabulous inside your girly pink shirt.
Wanna come over and we can play Samurais dress up? I can play the colonialist bastard Englishman and you can, ah, spear me with your Samurais, ah, weapon.
Have a great weekend.
Hello, Panda-kun, um, I mean Shigeki-chama!
I don't know about you, but I am knackered. But surprisingly I wasn't an uberbitch to the kids I interviewed today. I even gave them hints when they didn't understand my questions.
Hina dolls don't scare me as much as old Western dolls with their blonde ringlets and big eyes. A lot of them aren't stored and kept carefully like the hina dolls, so they get grimy and even darker. Kinda remind me of Kristen Dunst in "Interview with a Vampire."
We had sakura mochi for dessert in our school lunch today. I think I will drink some of the strawberry tea the late Kawamoto-sensei gave me last year in honor of Girls' Festival day. It was a White Day present he gave to me less than a month before he passed away.
You can tell I'm tired...I'm rambling again. How pink is your shirt? Sakura pink or hot pink?
I was just wondering about this Girl's festival that some of my colleagues were talking about and thought it was a joke! Thanks for clarifying - and now when I'm back at work on Monday, I can say it in the Japanese name as well! My colleagues would be most impressed! There's another reason why I visit your blog - you explain the Japanese culture and antics in simple terms that I can comprehend! Thanks!
Gundam pretty boy? If you say so... but I think you are probably way more manly looking than that. :)
I've seen a few Gundam animations and manga before... the robots were quite "shounen manga" quality boyish... but some of those young men seem like they are draw very girlishly, or at least somewhat androgynous. But I like the animations nonetheless - and I'd say you are probably quite masculine if you appear anything like you sound, and from the few pics we have seen of you thus far. :)
As for samurai, Japanese fashion has always been very cutting edge. (I do like the outfits the samurai had... I bet the Shinsengumi was considered very stylish in its time!)
I LOVE how Japan has so many festivals!!! It's so festive!!!
And I love Gundam and giant robots too!!
Enjoy your weekend!!! ;)
I wouldn't mind if the U.S. has more festivals...as long as we got the day off from work. I can already imagine myself at home sleeping. I love the holidays!!
this doesn't have anything to do with dolls, but with statues: i once remember seeing a movie in the philippines when i was really small. it was a horror movie and it had a lot of life sized statues with scary lighting on them. i suppose, now, that movie would have been pretty tame--campy, even--but i was too small to know any better.
I find those regal porcelain dolls and now, the ones pictured here scary. I remember watching some B-movie entitled "Demonic Toys" when I was younger and the doll there, along with the clown in a box, scared the living daylights out of me! It takes a "real man" to wear a pink shirt, so they say. I got this light pink collared shirt for Christmas and I love it, I don't feel girly at all wearing it.
The google image link with all the sushi? Made me hungry. I want pink sushi for lunch!
I find it utterly fabulous. If I ever go by or you come over, please get me one of those dolls!
Paul
Hi Naomi,
Well, they are actually easily fixed and I will probably blog about the recipe some time. So stay tuned. :) I am sorry that your experience is not a lot yet I guess I could introduce something "neo-Japanese" from time to time. :-) You have a fabulous weekend!
Hi Steve,
hahahaha. I am glad you owned GI Joe dolls. Not Barbie dolls. I kind of like pink so some of my shirts are very gay. But I try not to be total gay. Just fabulous. :) You crack me up about your roll playing. Oh yeah, I'd be delighted to try that out, you naughty Englishman :-) You have a fantabulous weekend!
Hi GaijinGirl,
I am not Panda at all. I usually go to bed around 4 in the morning and I have fabulous eye cream :) Well, if you take a closer look at night, they are kinda scary. maybe, I have some sixth sense but these dolls have souls. :) I really enjoyed our Hinamatsuri but I was a little sad that my mother didn't prepare Hamaguri no Osuimono. (Clam soup) you have a wonderful weekend.
Hi Ian,
Oh you were? I am glad you were wondering at least as they are not that obvious if you didn't pay attention to :) I am glad it was educational for you. :) Well, I explain our culture in simple terms because I don't have huge vocab to go with. :( huh... I went to Roppongi last night and it was like "Am I in Japan?" :) You have a fabulous weekend!
Hi Seekeronos,
Oh yeah, I would like to think I am a Gundam pretty boy. :) Well, I try to hide the queen part very well that's why I look like a straight guy from the outside while I am pink flaming homo. :) I really liked Gundam very much. I still have some plastic models that I used to be crazy about.... Well,I have some Japanese traditional clothes. I may have to take a photo when I wear them. :) Have a fantabulous weekend!
Hi Hanuman,
Oh yeah. I love that part, too. :) Everything is associated with seasons. you know. I love that thing to appreciate how the time changes. :) You have a pretty weekend!
HI Cesar,
I wouldn't mind if we had more festivals, either. :) I wish there was one month long holiday... huh.. You have a pretty weekend!
Hi Raph,
Well, there are some cursed Japanese traditional dolls here. And some of them talk to me. But we don't own anything cursed at our parents' so that's a good thing. :) Horror movies are kinda interesting to watch but I can see why young you was scared to watch. :) You have a great weekend!
HI Mark,
Yup. They are kinda scary but they don't talk to me so that's a good thing. :) I feel so girly when I wear my pink shirt and I automatically smile for no apparent reason because a pink shirt makes me happy. :) I wish I could wear something girl to go with for my bottom.... You have a prety weekend!
Hi Mush,
Yeah, these are called "Chirashi" sushi. They should taste a little different from what you usually eat for Sushi. No raw fish unfortunately. :) You have a pretty weekend!
Hi Paul,
It's kinda a set so you have to have some to make it "hinamatsuri" But they are very beautiful, too. :-) However, I didn't see them today as if you don't stow them quickly after the festival, the daughter will miss the chance to get married. That's what they've been saying about this festival. :) You have a great weekend!~
Shigeki, maybe you should start a new nationalist movement in Japan, and turn up to work dressed as a samurai, or maybe a geisha, if you'd prefer ;-p You would become famous overnight!
Between me and my husband we've owned more MP3 players over the years than I can count, including Sansas, iRivers, iPods (classic & touch), the Ibiza Rhapsody, etc. But, the last few years I've settled down to one line of players. Why? Because I was happy to discover how well-designed and fun to use the underappreciated (and widely mocked) Zunes are.
Excellent read, I just passed this onto a colleague who was doing a little research on that. And he just bought me lunch as I found it for him smile Thus let me rephrase that: Thank you for lunch!