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We're in the middle of the golden week. You may know that three national holidays are in a row in the first week of May and there is another national holiday at the end of April in Japan. So, if the timing is good, you can get a week off from work. It's called the golden week.
May the 5th is traditionally called Tango no sekku and it's originally a festival for boys.
But it's called kodomo no hi means "Children's day" recently. Yet, the traditional custom is still alive. We raise some carp streamers outside to celebrate the day because a carp is regarded as a symbol of courage since it swims upstream against the current. Those carp streamers are koi nobori means "rising carps or carp flags".
We also display special dolls called Mushaningyou which are modeled after the warriors of the Middle Ages. Both of them are for wishing boys to grow up strong. So the day is turned now for wishing all the children (both boys and girls) to grow up healthy and strong.
See the handcraft frame in the picture above. There are some koi nobori shaped items and a boy with kabuto is sitting on a wood shelf. Kabuto is an old-fashioned helmet which was used in the Middle Ages. Shoubu or Japanese irises are also in the frame because the flower is a symbol of Tango no sekku. The word shoubu is also means "win or lose", which is a symbolic word for brave warriors. I think it's a pun.
As you know that the Japanese summer is hot and unbearably humid, this is the best season for us before the rainy season called tsuyu in June and the unpleasant summer.
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events
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handcrafts
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