O Hanami in Japan! - Nao

Oh, it has been quite a long time… I meant to update sooner, but I had to go back to Japan for a while. It was such a crazy trip! I went to my friend’s wedding, and I had to give a speech. I’ve known this girl since I was in 4th grade. I was so happy that she could find the man of her life. It was a very touching wedding. I gave a talk in front of 120+ people and talked about our friendship. As soon as I started talking I began to feel tears filling up my eyes. I tried to hold them back, but of course I couldn’t do it. So, I was crying and talking at the same time in front of everyone… haha What I like about Japanese weddings is that they show pictures of the bride and the groom during their childhood, and this helps to describe to everyone what kind of people they are. They also tell you how the couple met, and how they became engaged and so on. If you are a friend of the bride or groom, you most likely already know how they met, but others in attendance may not. I’m telling you, Japanese weddings are very touching and emotional. At the end of the ceremony, the bride reads a letter to her parents. Oh my goodness, this it the most beautiful thing. My friend thanked her parents for her birth and she thanked her parents for their support throughout her life. Japanese really don’t express their feelings or say “thank you” to their parents, so it is very touching to hear somebody expresses respect and gratitude like that.

After the wedding party, Japanese usually have an “after-wedding” party at a local bar or restaurant. The newlyweds invite some more friends who were not invited to the wedding ceremony. My friend had her after-wedding party at a bar, and it was awesome. I saw all of my friends from Junior High school. I haven’t seen most of them for a long time, so it was great to see old friends.

I had a wonderful time in Japan. What made the trip even better was the “Cherry blossoms” (Sakura)! They were blooming like crazy and were so beautiful. In Japan, we often go to a park to enjoy cherry blossoms, and this is called “O Hanami.” We usually bring a lunch box and drinks to O Hanami. So, if you go to Japan during the cherry blossom season, you should visit a park. You will get to see how the Japanese enjoy O Hanami. If you are lucky, you’ll get to see the famous “Dojou sukui” dance. Dojou is a loach. The “Dojou sukui” dance is a dance that mimics scooping loaches, by a man that is usually drunk while doing this dance! Look at the wallpaper. Hiro’s pet, Gigi, is dancing the Dojou Sukui dance. Not that she is drunk all the time though! Haha. I took a picture of some cherry blossoms while I was in Japan, so check it out!



Have a great day, everyone!

Hug hug,
Nao