Christmas? Love, actually!

Christmas in Japan is intertwined with romance, and Christmas Eve is the, shall we say, climax of the festivities (oo er!). Couples usually go out on a Christmas Eve date and dine together at restaurants, many of which offer Christmas Eve candlelit courses for the starry-eyed. A young Japanese woman's common lament at Christmastime is about the absence of a beau and thus no Yuletide love!

Some families in Japan tell their children the story of Santa Claus, decorate the house with a tree & c and give presents to children, but usually in the Teutonic style of Christmas Eve present-giving and feasting (roast chicken being the favoured Yuletide flesh).

A popular festive sight is that of the Christmas illuminations. On the recommendation of a student, Sir S and I ventured out into a rainswept evening to view the illuminations amid the rice fields of a wealthy farmer. Sadly the fairy glow prettiness was blurred in my viewfinder due to the treacherous weather.