ひな祭り

One of Japan’s lesser known festivals is the Hina Matsuri, often called Girls Day. Japanese celebrate their daughters on 3/3 by setting out dolls and eating specific foods.

The dolls, representing the emperor and empress, are supposed to be taken out early, around February ,and put away before right after the festival. Failure to put them away in a timely manner is bad luck…OOOOOHHHH. The only answer I got for the ‘bad luck’ was from
Wikipedia, which says “leaving the dolls past March 4 will result in a late marriage for the daughter” This festival can trace its origins to more than 1000 years ago, back when people used the lunar calendar, so placing a specific date on ‘bad luck’ seems a little ridiculous…almost as ridiculous as believing in bad luck in the 21st century.


The dolls and displays range from simple (as shown) to insanely elaborate. No matter how elaborate your set-up is, the emperor and empress always go on top, and the other dolls, like attendants and samurai, are placed on a specific lower tier.

The food that people typically eat is Hina Arare. It is popped rice covered in a sugar or chocolate coating. You usually leave the Hina Arare near the dolls (because it's their food?) and then eat it at the end of the festival. They are pretty good, so give it a try some time.

As for other holidays, I believe the next holiday in Japan is March 20th, though its not really exciting...