Well it's the time of the year for love and all that. Valentine's day is coming and all of the marketing magic that comes along with it. I have to admit, I have enjoyed Valentine's Day in the past. I know it's a special day for people all over the world, and I suppose a miserable day for others. Anyway, I thought you might be interested in how Valentine's day is viewed over here in Japan. In Japan, Valentine's day is reverse, that is, girls are supposed to give boys something. I believe that most girls will make chocolate at home for their boyfriends or their good friends. I remember last year, some students brought me some home made chocolate. Lately I have seen advertisements for watches and cologne, etc, so I think that more luxurious items are now being marketed over here as Valentine's day gifts. Now apparently the quality of gift is supposed to show if a girl is interested in you or not. (this is what a co-worker told me, so it may not be true) That does make sense though. I wouldn't give an extravagant give to just anyone either.
So you are probably wondering what the guys have to do on Valentine's day. Well that is what "White Day" is for. What is "White Day"? It is March 14th, and it is a day that the guy is supposed to return the favor he received from his female friends. All the men's gifts adverts come down and all the women adverts go up. hmmm... So white day is a day for giving back for the guys. So this all leaves me in a predicament... I'm American, so should I celebrate Valentine's Day like I would in America? What about this "White Day"? 2 gifts? Too many questions over here. haha
Well I'm still going to celebrate Valentine's day the American way and Japanese. I'm going to make a hybrid holiday! Do you have a good name for my new hybrid American and Japanese Valentine's day? Let me know! I'm going to take a few photos of the Valentine's day displays this week, I'll post them up later on.
I'm interested to see how this week turns out. Be back soon!
peace
vince
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Hmmm...not bad. Having it both ways, i feel for your wallet. Isn't Osaka the food capital of Japan. It might be cheaper to feed someone rather than shop for 'em. Anyway, It's just a suggestion though.
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