Wednesday, April 26, 2017

golden week


In Japan we are about to enter Golden Week, when four national holidays are concentrated in a period of seven days. The last of these holidays is Kodomo-no-hi (Children's Day, sometimes called Boy's Day) on May 5.

Traditionally the festival celebrates the healthy growth of boys --girls having been covered by the Hinamatsuri Festival on March 3, which is not a national holiday. It is celebrated with displays and food that symbolize strength, perseverance, and bravery. These symbols include ancient samurai helmets, the Japanese iris, kashiwa-mochi (sweet sticky rice wrapped in an oak leaf), chimaki (sticky rice wrapped in bamboo leaves), and most famously, koinobori (carp-shaped windsocks) that are traditionally flown from flagpoles set up next to the house for that purpose. 

These etegami are works-in-progress, but I'll try to post a few completed versions soon. In the meantime, you might like to do a search on this blog for earlier etegami inspired by Children's Day. (Use the "search this blog" box in the sidebar).

2 comments:

  1. I do like all these symbols, it seems to me that the few we have here are disappearing quickly...

    ReplyDelete
  2. Debbie these creations are beautiful and wonderful background post ~ Happy Celebrations ~

    Wishing you a Happy Weekend ~ ^_^

    ReplyDelete