You may not have guessed it, but Japan celebrates Christmas in a big way.
However, living in Japan means that we follow a Japanese holiday calendar that’s very different from the West.
How do still celebrate the holidays that are important to us and even give them their own Japanese twist?
We will see, in this holiday edition of Life in Japan.
And... Go!
Yes!
[Life in Japan Theme Song]
Oh look at this! The tree is going up. Yeah, we are actually opening it.
You're opening it up? Nice.
Hello. Hello.
You can see yourself too. Yes, sure can.
That is what we are looking at everyday almost.
Every year we get ready for the holidays by putting up our Christmas tree.
There’s all kinds of ornaments and decorations that hold special meaning and sentimental value.
It all helps create the special atmosphere of Christmas.
What's the story behind that angel.
That angel, my grandma took me to go Christmas shopping, I think I was probably 12 or 13,
And I bought that angel for my parents' Christmas tree.
They have since downsized their house and then asked me if I wanted the angel for my tree and I do.
And here we are
But before we can celebrate Christmas, there’s another important holiday that comes first.
Are you guys ready?
Yep.
It’s a big American holiday, and turkey is the centerpiece.
Do you know what it is?
We’re getting ready to celebrate it with friends.
What are we getting today?
We are getting paper plates, paper cups, paper silverware.
And...toiletpaper.
Lots of paper.
The holiday we’re getting ready for is Thanksgiving,
and almost every year we have a big meal together with friends and family to celebrate.
We’ve already bought most of the food, we just need some more supplies.
What are we going to get.
Got the cups and the plates. Now some silverware.
Back at home, it was finally time to cook the turkeys.
That’s right, this year we bought two in preparation for the big event.
Because Japanese ovens are small, we have to be careful not to buy a turkey too big for our oven.
7 kilos. 325 [degrees Fahrenheit]
How many turkeys have you prepared?
Oh, I can't count.
It's a heavy bird.
7 kilo bird.
Whoa, 89 minutes does it?
Oh no. 4 hours later. But my oven, I can only figure out how to time it for 90 minutes.
Several hours later, it was time for the turkey carving!
It's the moment! Let the chopping begin.
Oh man, that smells good. Oh yeah, it's good.
In years past we’ve done this at the Thanksgiving meal, but this year we’re doing it before because it just takes a while.
I like a big ol' turkey leg.
There is an art to this but I'm not sure if I've perfected it.
The turkey police are out. I guess.
The moment finally came to gather all the food and people together at our Paz Coffee shop.
It was so much fun, sharing this special meal together with friends.
I'm going to sleep very well tonight.
Everyone really enjoyed themselves. And just look at that plate of food!
But Thanksgiving in America isn’t just about a big meal,
it’s the time when most Americans travel back to their hometowns to be with family again, much like New Years is in Japan.
Since that’s not an option for us this year, we like to take a couple days off to be together with family here in Japan.
The clouds are climbing up Mt Fuji.
Are you ready. Yeah.
Asher, are you ready? No? Yes?
We’ve come out to Lake Kawaguchi to see the fall colors before enjoying a few days of vacation at Yamanakako.
It was chilly but clear — perfect fall weather.
What's going on here guys?
Are we going to see some cool leaves?
Even though most of the leaves have fallen, we’ve come to see a highlight that so many people have suggested to us: the Maple Corridor.
Here we go. It's late in the season but there is still a maple leaf corridor.
How's it looking there Becca? I thought there was one that you drove through?
Daddy walked right in front of my view.
It's so pretty over there.
A video of a video? Yes, a video of a video.
Alright. Moving on.
Awe, you girls look like models.
This is gorgeous here.
It turned out to be the perfect place to get some fun family photos — the kind that you hold on to forever.
This is the perfect spot for photos here.
Actually Anna, you stand right here and I'll throw it on you. Put your hands up like you're throwing it.
Not all the photos always turn out as you think they will.
That’s alright, you just try again until you get it right.
But as usually happens when out exploring, the conversation eventually turns to food.
Yakisoba?
That sounds pretty good right now. It does actually.
[singing 'yakisoba sushi']
1, 2, 3. Smile Anna.
Oh, lovely. Look at mommy.
1, 2 ... don't look at daddy, look at mommy.
We are going to a park which we hope is awesome.
Not like bad
Not bad. Because we get bored. Really fast.
I guess pretty views don’t always thrill the kids — that’ alright, there’s going to be a lot of fun where we’re going.
Here comes some ladies.
Who are really hungry. Who are really hungry? Well, lets figure out lunch.
Are you guys hungry? Hungry?
And bored?
I'm super duperly hungry camera. Oh my!
I want some ice cream. Ice cream?
Walking the line.
Whoa, don't fall in the boiling lava.
On our way to our cabins the girls thoroughly documented the trip out the back window — at least until daddy noticed.
Hey Anna, are you recording tons of stuff?
yes
Whoa, we made it, we made it!
Oh yum. Is it good?
Look at the girls having one of their personal favs.
Momma with her fresh flowers for her time here.
When it’s time to relax and celebrate a holiday together, there’s nothing quite like our favorite cabin getaways.
To us, nothing says “vacation” quite like Yamanakako.
What does vacation look like for me? A puzzle, a book, cup of coffee and the kids playing happily
And kids interrupting. Hahaha
You're getting a border up there that's nice.
Ok, grab with the one hand, put your foot over. And the other foot over
And put your hand on the rope and go. Yes!
Awesome dude.
Dude. You did it!
The first time by yourself.
Some pingpong is going down at the pingpong house. I'm winning right now. I have 5 he has 4.
This is how they do back.
Whoa, good job though Becca. It was close.
That was good. 6-5.
Ohhh, so close.
7-5
One of the things that the kids love about coming out here is when Jiji and Baba, Ruth's aunt and uncle are out here. Oh my goodness.
They just have blast in their cabin.
Well, hi. How's it going?
Oh, what do you got there?
What songs are you working on?
There’s always something going on, and sometimes you can even hear one of Jiji’s special stories.
He had learned some Spanish
Story time with Jiji?
Oh, how special.
But the longer we’re in Japan, the more we incorporate some of their traditional meals into our holidays.
What do I see here?
Nabe.
And guess who helped?
My helpers.
Big sister with a big knife.
Becca, you're going to scare everyone in Life in Japan.
Yeah, and you're scaring us.
Yeah, you should be the responsible one, but you're making everyone comment about how its so dangerous.
Do you guys remember nabe?
Wow, look at this.
If we wash all the dishes, we get ice cream. So that's why.
Well, that's a pretty good deal.
While mommy does a puzzle.
I approve of this deal.
Yeah, it's coming together.
The satisfying part.
Good morning.
Becca!
Oh wow. This puzzle is almost completed.
Oh, this goes right here.
I just tried that.
What are we working on here?
Pumpkin pie.
Anna Cakes, we're going to let you make a pie?
At last, Thanksgiving day arrived, and we all got ready for our family feast.
Look at that turkey though Silvia! That looks awesome.
Let's take a leg off. Who wants a drumstick?
Awe, look at that big ol' turkey leg.
Oh, look at that. First piece. Alright.
It's a promising sign. There we go.
What is that though?
That's the turkey dude. Turkey!
It comes shaped like a bird. Yeah, right.
Uncle John's carving the turkey right now. Wow.
Oh boy.
Brought the corn. Corn, alright.
Happy Thanksgiving. Sauerkraut
At Thanksgiving we take time to celebrate the good things that God gives us:
life, love, family and friends.
We remember that we need each other and that isn’t a bad thing.
Way to go. You were the turkey cooker, huh?
Desserts. We have pecan pie, pumpkin bars. And the pumpkin pie is coming.
And the mashed potatoes have come.
Still working on getting the rest of it off.
Turkey wing anybody?
Green bean casserole.
No Thanksgiving is complete without green bean casserole. That is so true.
Before our official Thanksgiving meal, the kids treated us to a dramatic presentation of the first Thanksgiving.
We're going to do the Thanksgiving show, please watch.
Let's plant some food.
Ok, now let's plant the seeds...
Ok, the first winter.
I'm dying of hunger!
There's no food!
A lot of people died.
Let's make more food.
Then the Indians came.
What are you doing? Oh, we're planting food.
That is not how you plant food.
Ok, let's show them guys! 3, 2, 1.
Let's do it again, together!
Yeah, like that. Now plant the seeds.
The second winter: yea, we have food!
Wait! You need to pray!
Fold your hands guys.
Dear Jesus, thank you that the Indians came and taught us how to make food. In Jesus' name, amen.
Yea!
That's the story of Thanksgiving! Thank you for watching!
Yea!
3, 2, 1 Thank you!
That was awesome!
That was so good I could eat.
Alright, time to dig in.
And so we gave thanks and enjoyed our own Thanksgiving meal, thankful for family, friends and each one of you.
I wish you could all taste the meal too!
Sarah's almost done already!
Hallelujah Goziamasu
The baby's coming, the baby's coming!
Look out! The baby is coming!
We just had such a wonderful time celebrating the holidays with our family
And you know what? You can join us on two different occasions.
The first is on December 19, we have Candlelight Christmas services at our church at 4:00 PM and 5:30 PM
They will be live-streaming, but it will be way more fun if you could come in person.
And on December 24, Christmas Eve, will be our family's Christmas celebration!
So you can join us at 7:00 PM TST
So make sure you look at the links in the description for all the information you want,
And make sure you subscribe so you know the moment we're premiering a Life in Japan video.
Alright, we'll see you next time on Life in Japan. Bye bye.