Jeepney Press : Alma Fatagani-Sato

END OF THE YEAR IN JAPAN by Alma Fatagani-Sato

All over the world, each country has its own way, of preparing, to welcome the New Year. In Japan, the official working day ends on December 28th (it may vary depending on each company). Most of the people in Japan start the preparation on that day, but some may start a few days earlier. Everyone is quite busy, since there are many activities to be carried out before December 31st, the New Year’s Eve.

The kagami-mochi (special mirror rice cakes) with daidai (Japanese bitter orange) on top, is used for offerings and eaten between January 7th to 15th (dates vary depending on which region). First appeared during the Muromachi period, these rice cakes were made manually. But, nowadays, these rice cakes are available commercially in vacuum-sealed packaging.

The mochitsuki (rice cake making), which is a kind of special event. Family members, relatives and sometimes even friends gather and pound glutinous rice using a big wooden mortar and pestle. After pounding, they eat the freshly-made rice cakes together. This custom seems to continue up to this time all over Japan. If you are lucky, you may see Sumo wrestlers in some places doing the mochitsuki on this special event.

The o-souji (general house cleaning), is a very important activity. All the corners of the house are cleaned and tidied-up. Most of the time, all the members of the family are quite busy with their own activities – work, studies, hobbies, etc. The o-souji, promotes togetherness in the family, since every family member is a part of the cleaning team.

The o-misoka, the New Year’s Eve, it’s the evening of December 31st. The family members get together and eat the toshi-koshi soba (end of the year buckwheat noodles) with shrimp tempura (deep-fried, batter-coated shrimps), while listening to the sound of the chiming bells, from the nearby temple, resonating through the crisp and cold winter air. The shrimp having its back curved, and the buckwheat noodles that are usually long and thin, are both representation of long life. Buckwheat noodles can be eaten all throughout the year in Japan but, the toshikoshi soba has a different texture. These special noodles are easily cut, which represents the quick release from illness and debts. The custom of eating buckwheat noodles, on New Year’s Eve, began around the middle of the Edo period.

I’m not very fond of mochi, but I love eating the toshi-koshi soba especially with the shrimp tempura. The taste of each dish compliments each other, that it creates a feast for the palate. And for me, that particular taste is special. It makes me feel relaxed to end the current year and to welcome the coming of the New Year.

Alma Fatagani-Sato, writer