I found myself staring into the flames of the pizza oven. The closest thing I've found to a yule log in Tokyo. A bustling italian restaurant, but I chose cocoa over wine. The dulcit tones of a live band playing jazzy christmas tunes and a singer crooning words to songs I mostly know. I say mostly, because a recent trip to karaoke showed me that I only really know the choruses to most christmas songs. I had no idea how many verses some of these songs had. Personally my caroling experiences never made it past the first verse. NY is too cold for second verses.
Tokyo is cold, but well lit at least. It should be. Everywhere in the streets are buildings, structures and trees adorned with innumerable lights. Some poor, barely viable saplings on city sidewalks are so overladen with electric they seem about to break under the weight of all that luminous joy. I can only imagine how many carbon credits Japan will end up buying from Uganda to offset the environmental footprint of old St. Nick. But what concerns me most is the carefree attitude with which the locals have bedecked the city in lights. Has everyone forgotten about Mothra! Too many lumens could draw out the oversized radioactive moth beast. For my part I'm avoiding any wool just in case it does reappear. Get those singing twins on stand by.
The discussion of Christmas in Japan always generates a lot of handwringing about what the Japanese version of the celebration "means." Westernization! Consumerism! Secular, godless, pokemon themed bacchanalia! Ahhhhhh Elf poo! If I were capable of over thinking right now I wouldn't choose to. I like shortcake with strawberries, whether it is called Christmas cake or not. The sexy Mrs. Santa outfits on sale across the city are a lot better than any Christmas garb I've seen back home.
For me, the greatest thing about Christmas in Japan is that for the wide majority of people it isn't something to be thought too deeply about. Though I am Catholic and celebrate the day religiously, its nice to do it in an atmosphere of simplicity. Just decorate your tree, eat your cake and move on. Meanwhile cable news channels in my home country (the U.S.) cover the yearly "The war on christmas." It's nice to be living in a Christmas war neutral country. What does it all mean? It means I get to eat some cake. Enjoy the holiday season in my own way. Maybe get a present of two. Thats enough for me.
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