So the 14th of February is the day to confess your feelings?
Yeah that's right.
Girls tell the boy they like how they feel.
They make chocolates.
Have you given someone valentine chocolates?
Yes
Love is in the air! It's Valentine's day coming up soon, however
Valentines day in Japan might be different from the Valentines you know
from back home. Let's go and ask Japanese about Valentine's.
Recently instead of girls giving boys things, girls give each other chocolates.
- Chocolates? - Yeah we make them ourselves.
So you share your love not only with your darling but with everyone.
- That's it. - We call it Tomochoco
Chocolate for friends.
Before then it was like...
Girls were putting chocolates into the shoe box of the boy they liked.
Put the chocolates in the box
and that pretty much means "I like you".
I think that was a thing before.
So it's like a day to confess your feelings?
Yes it's the day where girls have the chance to confess their feelings.
So February 14th is love confession day?
Yes pretty much.
If the other person likes you too, how would he express that?
White day!
That's the day when boys give something back.
When is that? - March 14th.
You have to wait for a whole month?
Wait I have heard the term for chocolates that you make yourself.
Honemei choco?
Honmei choco! Tomochoco is just out of obligation really.
So Girichoco is for friends.
And Honmei choco is only for the person you like.
Exactly, only one.
So on the Japanese valentine's day, girls confess their feelings.
Exactly! - But recently...
Recently there is also Gyakuchoco where a boy gives a girl he likes chocolates
Honmei (love), Giri (obligation), Tomo (friends), Gyaku (from boys).
Forgot anything? - No that's good that's all.
Why chocolate?
I wonder why! Why chocolate?
We just did it all so... it's chocolate.
You use chocolate and shape it like you feel.
make something by hand, shape it like you want it...
Make it your favorite shape and give it to the other person.
Put your heart into chocolate. - Yes.
Do only girls do that?
Only girls, right?
- Yeah. - Men don't do that.
Men give something back on White Day.
What do people usually get on White Day?
Men usually give something random.
It's normal for girls to give things to boys.
- And not to friends? - You give it to friends too.
Generally we give more chocolates to friends.
We exchange chocolates.
So recently it's more a celebration with friends?
Yes Tomochoco.
Do you also make handmade Tomo choco?
We make it or we just buy it.
If we have the time, we make it.
Buy chocolate and give it as gifts.
- You MAKE it! - Oh making it...
Those who can make it, make it.
But some don't have anything to do with Valentine.
There are many who are not interested in it.
I heard some put chocolates into the school shoe box?
- That sounds dirty! - Not in the shoe box!
That only happens in the world of Manga.
She said only in Manga!
- We don't do that.
We give it by hand.
I have done that before.
Call him out of the classroom and hand it over.
Abroad, couples give each other gifts on that day.
Yes, and cards, right?
Well or roses and such.
You celebrate your relationship.
- She said it's not just chocolate. - I think that's better.
It's the day when girls confess their feelings to guys.
by making chocolate.
- What type do you make? - Truffles.
Wow we got a gorgeous chocolate maker here, making truffle chocolate!
I just roll it.
- Do you give back on White day. - I do.
What do you give back? - Whatever I see on Rakuten
It's a net shopping page and it has a recommended section for White Day
about what to give back.
I look at rank number one and get that one.
I have confessed my feelings with chocolate - How did that go?
He gave me something back on White day so we went out.
But later we broke up.
So you were waiting for one whole month for a reply?
Yes I waited!
- But it was ok in the end. - It was ok in the end.
Did you put the chocolates in his shoe box?
I handed it to him by hand. - Using all your courage! - Yes.
- Where did you buy his chocolate? - I made it myself.
- Is that important? - It totally is!
What did you make?
I made cookies in the shape of soccer balls and gave them to him
So he played soccer I assume.
You thought about his hobby - Yes
That's a nice idea!
Have you done anything for Valentine's?
I haven't done anything as romantic.
Just exchanging chocolate with friends, not more than that.
You were so brave to confess to him!
Have you given any gift on valentines?
I give chocolate to friends and the person I love.
Have you done a valentine confession?
Well, I have...
Will you tell me the whole story?
I gave some away to a boy I liked in kindergarten but recently I didn't give any.
I don't make it anymore.
In high school I just gave chocolate to all my friends.
- Giri Choco Festival! - Yeah for all my friends.
Isn't that pricey?
In the end I bought big value packs and then separated them out
That's what I did.
In High school I gave away choco once...
But that person gave my chocolate away to someone else
and didn't eat it.
- That's a shame. - Yeah, right.
- Did that person not like chocolate? - It wasn't that...
They just carelessly gave it to someone else.
That's my bittersweet memory.
Damn that's bittersweet.
Have you given chocolate to a boy?
I have but ... I was not in love with him...
but then everyone around misunderstood the gesture
But we are still good friends now.
- That's good to hear. - Yeah we get along super good.
Have you ever given Valentine chocolate? - I have.
Was that Ho Ho HONMEI chocolate?!
Yeah I did that too.
- Wow you did? - Yeah I did.
Have you ever made chocolate? - Yes for friends.
And Homei chocolate? - Nope.
- Not at all? - Nope.
I gave mine away in middle school.
And did he give you something back?
Yes I got something back!
- Did you confess your love with that chocolate? - Yeah it was like that.
How was your Valentine? Do you give things away?
I did - You GAVE on Valentine's day?
Yeah I did. To other boys.
- Do boys give chocolate to their friends too? - Yeah about right.
We all just exchange chocolate, boys and girls alike.
We exchanged it all as class, in school.
So nobody feels lonely and left out? - Exactly.
- Have you given chocolate to someone you like
Yes I have.
Made something and gave it to the person I liked.
And how was it received?
I don't really remember it anymore.
But we became better friends afterwards.
If it made you get along better then that's nice!
Even if you don't want to go out with anyone you can give them chocolates?
I still give it to people I get along with.
Can it be used if you want to make that person your friend? - Yeah.
- Have you ever given Vday chocolate? - I have but...
I gave that away in kindergarten.
- Did you make it? - I made cookies with my mother.
And then gave it to one child who was older than me.
- Did he eat it? - Yes he actually did.
We became close friends.
Lucky you!
Have you ever given any?
I did it once! - You have?
Yes I have.
I drowned strawberries in chocolate.
And then handed them over just like that.
Was that Honmei chocolate?
No I think it was Giri chocolate.
What's the difference between honmei and giri chocolate?
Giri is for friends.
It's a society thing. You have to give it to your seniors or juniors.
Tomo is for friends...
Giri is out of obligation
Your senpai and such.
You kind of have to... - Yeah...
That's giri chocolate.
Man that's difficult-
Those were my questions. Thank you so much.
After watching this video, have you learned which types of chocolate are here
and which types of chocolate people give out?
Why do people in Japan actually give each other chocolate?
The thing has developed in the 1950s and the Morinaga company
Which does chocolates and other sweets kind of pushed it in the commercials
And tried to get that Valentines message out.
At the start they promoted it that if you bought chocolate you got a watch or a cinema ticket.
They pushed that image in their commercials and that image stuck.
They started doing heart-shaped chocolates and so on.
The chocolate industry pushed the image of giving out chocolates on valentines
and so it became a thing here.
Right now it's still a very one-sided thing. So only girls
Give guys something for Valentines.
But as you can see it has been changing and some say
its completely different now.
I give you a final run down. We have HONMEI chocolate which is
the chocolate you give to the people or the one person that you're in love with
which usually is a love confession. So Japan on Valentines is more
a place where you confess your love.
GIRI CHOCOLATE is the one you give because you HAVE TO
Like to your senpai or people in your company and such.
or other people in your club at school.
Then you have TOMO chocolate which you give to friends.
You don't give it out because you HAVE TO but because you want to.
And then there is GYAKU chocolate which means that one...
is there for boys to give to girls.
Cause usually in Japan only girls do all the work and make chocolate
and give stuff on this day.
Things are changing. Some people said ONLY girls celebrate this now.
Some said boys can give out chocolate too.
Taking this away from the one-sided girls only give to guys thing.
and then wait for a month to give something back.
That was our report for Valentines in Japan. Hope you have a lovely day.
Is Valentines in Japan better or worse than in your country?
Let me know what you are doing in your country!
I am looking forward to catching you on Ask Japanese! Bye!