Silver Week

Most gaijins here already know or at least, have heard of Golden Week in May which is almost a week long holiday (kinda scattered within a week) coz of back-to-back bank holidays. Luckily, in September this year, it sort of happens again. So what do J-peeps celebrate? It's the Respect for the Aged Day, which is followed by another national holiday (unnamed - due to the law) and then the Autumn Equinox Day. That’s 3 days of bank holidays and if you add the weekend, you get 5 days off. Oh, yes!

Most travel agencies want to capitalise on this and the mass media or (some marketing guru) has dubbed it as Silver Week. Not bad as it has a ring to it! Also, hence silver reflects old age in J-land which sort of equates to the Respect for the Aged Day. Anyway among the popular holiday destinations this year are Seoul, Bali, Taipei and Guam. So beware, it’s gonna be mayhem again, I promise. Trains and roads would be jammed pack so take note of these when you’re traveling. Fortunately, for me, I’ll be spending it at home doing some DIY (again). But we might pop out and acclimatised ourselves at our local neighbourhood or hang out at museums and even do a bit of shopping at AEON.

Back to School

The 2nd term has started and all are already looking forward for the 5-day bank holiday coming in mid-September. But one thing you’ll notice is the array of souvenirs (sweets or snacks) at your school. おみあげ omiage is a must if you’re Japanese, or even if you’re not, J-peeps will appreciate it immensely. They are usually sweets or snacks (or anything edible) from the place you spent your holiday. Even if you stayed at home, a local omiage would be available. So there's no excuse in getting one. It comes in different forms of Japanese sweets or snacks and some towns and cities are actually famous for their own original souvenirs like unagi pie in Shizuoka Prefecture.

Gift giving is certainly the norm here and sometimes it's a great icebreaker for some colleagues that you don’t usually talk to. I brought in some Scottish shortcake the last time when my mum paid us a visit in Golden Week and my work absolutely love it. It might be a bit of a hassle or waste your precious holiday time but I can assure you that it’s all worth it. It’s a good sign of appreciation within the workforce and builds teamwork. Also, your state of popularity will be a high.