Apologies to my readers (both of you) for not updating for such a long time, but a busy Christmas holiday coupled with sheer apathy and laziness stood in my way. Well, now I’m back and will resume my usual schedule of snobbish orientalism. Today, let’s talk about Christmas and, being as it’s the first day of February, we find ourselves in a position of detached analysis. Perhaps, we can look back on that most sacred of festivals and reflect on what it means in a culture that is largely agnostic, where the holiday is stripped of most of its religious and traditional connotations and reduced to merely its most commercial aspects. Most likely though, we’ll all stare and go “ooooooh isn’t Japan wierd?!?”
Christmas in Japan is not Christian; somewhat of a confusing state of affairs considering Jesus’ name is right there in the name of the holiday. I for one welcome this development, all throughout my childhood and adolescence I was subjected to many angry column inches in right wing bastions of bitterness like the Daily Mail about the so-called “War on Christmas.” The conspiracy goes that left-wing bureaucrats and petty politicians are conspiring to kill Christmas out of a mixture of spite, political correctness and wanting to be the Grinch from that Dr. Seuss book. Those columnists painted a picture of a terrifying brave new world in which there was to be no mention of anything vaguely related to Christianity or traditional Christmas activities lest it offend the sensibilities of religious minorities. I always thought this was a ludicrous fantasy, “No way would there be a Christmas entirely divorced from its original meaning” I thought smugly to myself. But I was wrong. It exists, and it’s wearing a kimono.
The Japanese Christmas curiously enough is actually dating season. If you were to walk down Central gardens, or any of Nagoya’s other romantic hotspots on Christmas Eve, the place would be packed with young couples holding hands and making hushed conversation under the glow of the ‘irumineeshon’ (Christmas lights.) I have to admit, dear reader, that I followed suit and arranged a date for Christmas day – “When in Rome...” as the saying goes. I understand that the early sunsets and the plethora of Christmas decorations help to create a romantic atmosphere, but I’m still a little confused as to why it is that the Birth of Santa (or whatever Christmas is about) acts as an aphrodisiac to Japanese women. Maybe it’s the beard...
As I mentioned in my Junk food post, Christmas is the time for KFC. I was a little sceptical about how true this claim was when someone first told me, but seeing the queue outside of the Nagoya branches of KFC stretch around the block quashed any suspicions I had. In fact, if you want to eat at KFC on Christmas Day, you have to make a reservation weeks in advance and wait for hours just to get a seat (think using British rail services). I for one didn’t go to KFC, but I did get some KFC style chicken from a cafe, (which was also crowded) where it came wrapped in two slices of bread and served with some lettuce. Yes, it was a KFC sandwich.
Now I think about it maybe Japanese Christmas isn’t all that different from Western ones - a lot of time spent with loved ones (or even people you’d rather not see again) and a tradition of consuming food that’s not very good for you. The Japanese still give and receive Christmas presents, though, like in the West, it’s mainly for the kids and I’m sure if you flicked trough enough channels on T.V. you could probably find a batty old woman, giving a dull monologue that bores you to tears, which could fit your Queen’s speech needs. So, Merry Christmas from over a month ago, perhaps in June I can get around to wishing you a happy New Year as well.
