Showing posts with label Golden Week. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Golden Week. Show all posts

May 4 - Greenery Day – Japan

    Posted on May 4, 2022


This is an update of my post published on May 4, 2011:



Today is near the end of Japan's Golden Week, a string of holidays that includes Showa Day (April 29), Constitution Memorial Day (May 3), and Children's Day (a.k.a. Boy's Day, May 5).

This is a day to commune with nature and to be thankful for its blessings. Even though nature sometimes dishes out huge disasters (like the 2011 earthquake and tsunami that ravaged Sendai and nearby areas of Japan!), there are plenty of things for which we all, including the Japanese people, can feel grateful. 


We could all use a Greenery Day to remind us to think of the environment. How about a visit to your local arboretum or botanical garden, a hike in the woods, or a work session in a garden. Don't have a garden? Start one! Or use Google to find a community garden you can work in on a regular basis.






Also on this date:


(First Wednesday of May)








Plan ahead:

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May 5 – Children's Day in Japan

Posted on May 5, 2019

This is the end of Japan's Golden Week:



April 29: Shōwa Day

May 3: Kempo Kinenbi (Constitution Memorial Day)

May 4: Greenery Day

 May 5: Children's Day!

 The old name for Children's Day is Boy's Day. It's also called Feast of Banners. 

 Because so many of Japan's nine official holidays fall at the end of April and the beginning of May, the entire week was named "Golden" - a week when many companies and schools are closed down completely, and many Japanese people either travel or do leisure and recreational activities near home.

 On Children's Day, families raise carp-shaped flags that look like they are swimming in the wind, with one carp for each family member (parents as well as children). 



According to Chinese legends, carp swim upstream in order to become dragons!
The insides of homes are traditionally decorated with samurai dolls and helmets and such.









The day's traditional treat are mochi rice cakes wrapped in leaves. The cakes may be filled with red bean jam. 
Other traditions include baths sprinkled with iris leaves and roots, or special comic theater performed by kids. Of course many families have picnics or enjoy other fun activities.





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May 3 – Kempo Kinenbi in Japan





Posted on May 3, 2016


The rough translation of this holiday's name is Constitution Memorial Day. It commemorates the current constitution, which came into effect on this date in 1947, shortly after World War II.

I read that it is a day to think about the meaning of democracy and to teach or learn about the Japanese government.

If that doesn't sound all that festive to you, note that it is part of Golden Week, a cluster of holidays:

April 29 – Showa Day (a holiday commemorating the former emperor)
May 3 – Constitution Memorial Day
May 4 – Greenery Day
May 5 – Children's Day

You can see lots of carp streamers
all through Golden Week.
You may wonder if people take off work and school during this time, and the answer is (in general): YES! Some companies shut down completely for the week. For many people, this is the longest vacation period of the year—and of course it tends to be a nice time of the year temperature-wise—so many Japanese people end up traveling and taking outings during Golden Week.

Airports and train stations and hotels tend to be busy; sightseeing spots tend to be jammed. Not the best time for the rest of the world to visit Japan, methinks!


Here are some of the sights some Japanese people are undoubtedly seeing: 
  • Mount Fuji 


  • Kinkakuji (The Golden Pavilion)
  • Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden


  • The Sansoji Temple
  • Robot Restaurant



  • Tokyo Disneysea
  • Hot springs of Wakayama






Also on this date:
































Plan ahead:

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