Here comes snow again!!!

The moment I stepped out from the airplane onto the field of my country,Snow started to patter from the sky.Welcomed by my sister at the airport, I became in the mood of celebration for the New Year coming very next day.

In Japan, the period of New Year is the most important national festival ,in which people have holidays from about December 29th and it lasts one or two weeks to return their home and spend the moment with their families and relatives generally.

Toward New Year, we take dust from our houses and decolate with specific stuffs made with pine and bamboo,then make a special unite of dishes,which is called ''Osechi-ryori" and eaten during the event as being able to be kept for a couple of days. The contents are herring roem(kazunoko),sea tangle roll(konbumaki),sweetened black soybeans(kuromame),fish cakes(kamaboko) and so on,accompanied with their own wishes such as ''being able to be active'' for kuromame and '' happiness'' for konbumaki.

By the time we arrived at our home town, the snow mounted as deep as ever, which we never expected on the eve. Astonished by the unusual incident,I imagined that we were watching the annual program for New Year,eating a special noddle ''Toshikosi soba'' to wish our long-last lives at the very moment of the year changing and writing our ambitions for the coming year on the plain mind in the snug room.

The Christmas season!

I remember when 24 th of December was one of the most delightful days to be planed ,as if it had been in fantasy with St. Nicholas and a dream of the gifts beside the pillow given in the morning of the very next day ,when I was child . Of course, being adult, we look forward to the day to have a Christmas Eve diner and exchange presents with family,lovers,friends and so on ,imitating the way European countries celebrate the birth of Christ,which is said to be created to stimulate our consumer desire for parches,letting the market active in my country.

On the 25 th  I was awake from the weariness as I had been busy in selling Christmas cards and gifts in London.After a small bite of bread with a cup of coffee, I was waiting for my friends coming to pick me up for the Celebration. In Japan after Eve we are to get back to normal,heading to school and work.On the contrary,it is one of the most important national holidays here and we are all supposed not to work and be at home with family and friends.
As I entered the room,there were plenty of senses of the special day sparkling in the air.Under the tree were presents,on the table were set plates,glasses and crackers for the midday diner and I smelled turkeys being grilled.  The Christmas trip started to open the crackers, and  move to sip the soup,bite the turkey and unwrap the presents over our conversation,then finished with Christmas pudding accompanied by a glass of liqueur and, later,a cup of tea,having played fun games on the floor.

       

  

Having say goodbye to my friends and their family,delighted by their hospitality,I appreciated the spiritual  atmosphere lifted by the nation's joyful spirits with the feeling being soaked by the Christmas culture.

Here comes snow

On the way back from a Christmas greeting, I met a snowfall which made me stacked in the town, Ealing Broadway. It started to fall suddenly and covered everywhere in no time.
It was 2009 that the heaviest snow in 18 years was announced in London. Since then it has snowed as deep. Less experienced in a heavy snow, the city froze with few transport run, by which people were able to excuse to stay in and be warm at home. However, now that they are not beginners of snow, the tube and buses are supposed not to have  pretexts and let us run as possible as we hope.

Standing on the platform,waiting for a tube bringing me back to my flat, I was watching snow dropped from the sky onto the green,concealing the shape of  the scenery, which reminded me of my hometown,Shiga having snow every winter, where I was supposed to be in 2 weeks.
Due to the severe delay of Central line, I decided to wait a bus instead. Headding to the bus stop,I barely saw the road ahead ,which was hidden by the white.