Saturday, February 13, 2016

Nagasaki Lantern Festival

We took a little road trip down to Nagasaki for their annual Chinese Lantern Festival. It was a cold, rainy day so we didn't stay that long, but it was totally worth it! They have hundreds of ornate lanterns of all shapes and sizes. My favorites were the ones that represented each animal of the zodiac....

Thursday, February 4, 2016

Setsubun

Setsubun is the fun way the Japanese welcome spring every year. It is celebrated on February 3rd, the day before spring and is commonly thought of similarly to new years where the year is renewed. We went to Mamemaki, or bean scattering ritual, at a local shrine in Sasebo. The ceremonial burn pit...