Happy New Year!

oshougatsu-usagi1.jpg

Happy New Year! 明けましておめでとうございます。

When I was little in Japan, on New Years Day, after a lunch of ozouni and osechi and receiving my otoshidama (gifts of money in small envelopes) from my grandparents, aunts and uncles and parents, I would go outside with my cousins to play a game sort of like badminton called hanetsuki, with decorated wooden paddles called hagoita and feathered shuttlecocks called hane (which means 'feathers'). This bunny is decked out to do the same. Other New Years games included flying kites, spinning tops, and if it was snowing, making snow bunnies (yuki usagi), using evergreen leaves for the ears and red berries for the eyes.

oshougatsu-yukiusagi1.jpg

2011 is the Year of the Hare or Rabbit (or just Bunny). Since I was born in the year of the bunny, it feels rather special to me - especially since the next time it will be a Bunny year, I'll be pretty old. ^_^; In any case, here's hoping that it will be a hoppingly good year.

Submitted by maki on 2011-01-01 04:20.
Filed under:  holidays japan

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Comments

Rebecca from NZ

1 January, 2011 - 05:37

And a happy new year to you, too!
I'm born in the year of the bunny myself, and if my baby doesn't decide to come way too early, then he or she will be bunny-wabbit, too. Bunnies rule, I tell you!
We're the ones can handle tigers, and diplomatically, too. :)
Hop on, to new bento adventures in 2011!

joseph barone

1 January, 2011 - 05:56

明けましておめでとうございます!! i plan to do the new year like a japanese would. any simple ideas? i made mochi,datemaki,and kuromame, anything else you could suggest(stuff other than food would be greatly appreciated!) have a wonderful new year and best of wishes

Michele

1 January, 2011 - 07:55

Happy New Year to you! I was also born in the year of the rabbit.

Trish

1 January, 2011 - 12:47

Happy New Year from Hawaii! I'm a rabbit too, it's the second time I've experienced the 12 year cycle, age-wise. It's funny because I never feel older when celebrating birthdays, but every time it is the year of the rabbit, I REALLY feel like I'm getting older! Cheers!

ShuShu

1 January, 2011 - 14:38

i wish you a happy new year, have a great time! :3 and keep blogging, hehehe

ShuShu ♥

gilda92

1 January, 2011 - 19:12

Hoppy New Year to you two.

hoodedzippy

1 January, 2011 - 20:50

Happy New Year, Mari, and to all Just Hungry fans! Look forward to reading more entries and sharing comments and ideas. Just had my bowl of ozouni soup this morning...very comforting and wish I was back in Japan.

Daphne

1 January, 2011 - 22:32

Happy New Year from a fellow bunny, looking forward to another year of good food and your wonderful blog posts!

Anne H.

2 January, 2011 - 04:43

Did you make the amigurumi? I hope 2011 is as cute as they are!

maki

2 January, 2011 - 05:52

[quote=Anne H.]Did you make the amigurumi?[/quote]

Yep.

anon.

2 January, 2011 - 12:34

The rabbit holding the racket is superbly cute!

chris

2 January, 2011 - 10:22

Hi
I thought the Asian New Year (and thus the year of the rabbit) does not start until end of jan / beg. of feb?

happy new year!
chris

maki

2 January, 2011 - 14:50

[quote=chris]Hi
I thought the Asian New Year (and thus the year of the rabbit) does not start until end of jan / beg. of feb?[/quote]

Not in Japan, where the Gregorian calendar was officially adopted in 1873. The Asian New Year you refer (otherwise called the Lunar Year or the Chinese Lunar Year) is called the "old year" and New Year's Day according to that calendar is called the "old New Year" (kyuushougatsu 旧正月）in Japan, and was abandoned by the government when it was considered to be too inaccurate for modern times. (It is somewhat more inaccurate than the Gregorian or 'solar' calendar.)

While there are some vestiges of the use of the 'old' calendar in Japanese life (e.g. some towns celebrate Tanabata or the Star Festival on July 7th, others in August), most yearly events have been transferred to the 'new' Gregorian calendar. Therefore, in Japan the new year starts on January 1st rather than sometime in February.

Some other Asian countries, notably China, still stick to the lunar calendar for traditional events. See, not all of Asia is the same. ^_^

Jane

3 January, 2011 - 01:39

Happy New Year, Maki!
Thanks for the hard work last year! May this year be an even better year than the last :)

anon.

3 January, 2011 - 09:43

OMG! We are the same age, Maki! And yes, sad to say we will be old once the next Rabbit hops onto our path again.

Carpe diem! Enjoy your life, have a happy & healthy life!

claire boissel

4 January, 2011 - 22:36

Happy new year, love the rabbits!

Lisa Tatsuko

20 January, 2011 - 00:56

Happy New Year! Did you make the kawaii usagi? *Lisa

glycosidic

27 January, 2011 - 12:12

could you post the crochet diagram/instructions for making the rabbit, racket and flower? :) Please?

Kellynic

28 January, 2011 - 06:09

That Rabbit and the mochi are gorgeous! What book are they from?

maki

30 January, 2011 - 11:54

The patterns for the crocheted bunnies are not from a book...they are both from kits, heavily modified in the case of the bunny with the racket thing (hagoita). The patterns are copyrighted I'm sure so I can't post them I'm afraid.