Did you know Japanese people have a tradition not to cook on the first few days of January? Instead, they prepae and eat ‘osechi ryori’ in December.

You may be surprised to hear Japan has its holiday for both Labor Day and Thanksgiving. In fact, they are actually celebrated on the same day, on November 23. Known as Labor Thanksgiving Day or 勤労感謝の日 (Kinrou Kansha no hi), it is used to commemorate people’s hard work and was established by the Japanese government […]

Culture Day isn’t dedicated to Japanese culture alone, but whilst we are in Japan, how can we further appreciate the arts here?

Sports and Health Day in Japan is more closely associated with exercise, the community and healthy-eating, but is there anything else we should pay attention to?

Far from being a new practice, the foundations of Autumnal Equinox Day were actually laid out centuries ago. But, many moons later, are the origins of this holiday still relevant today?

Japan is the only nation to have a public holiday dedicated to the oceans. So, why is Marine Day important and how can we all celebrate it together?

The values behind Respect-for-the-Aged Day are important reminders for all of us. But why?

You might have heard of Golden Week, Japan’s highly anticipated holiday period, when a series of often consecutive holidays occurs from the end of April to early May, allowing many Japanese people to take a week off. But have you heard of Silver Week (シルバーウィーク)? Coined in 2009, Silver Week refers to a cluster of […]

The bonodori is a spiritual dance to welcome the spirits. Every region has a local dance and a different music.

To honor Emperor Naruhito’s birthday on February 23 in the current Reiwa period, we take a look at the origins of this holiday, the monarchy, and how Tokyo is involved.