MOONSTITCHES

Year of the Tiger, Day One, Part Two

Getting new daruma...

...after having dumped the old.

Something to eat, maybe oden?

We didn't have oden but yaki soba, these taiyaki and fried potatoes.

Others had grilled squid... while others waited patiently.

And then, of course, there was fun for children.

Masks for girls...

... and for boys.

Fishes here...

And there! Meant to be scooped into a bowl with a thin paper net, kingyo sukui, a typical game for children at festivals in Japan. Done with bouncy ball with waffle scoops, too.

And fishes, too, on our way home.

New Year decoration. Akemashite omedetou gozaimasu!

Year of the Tiger, Day One, Part One

Year of the tiger.

So much Japan in this photo...!

Another cute tiger welcoming the New Year and announcing until when this shop will open again.

A lot of red everywhere.

When you actually see people around that time, it's either at shrines or in shops.

Only a few women were wearing kimono this year.

Purification ritual before entering the shrine.

Clear, blue skies, such a typical weather for New Year in our area in Japan!

Omikuji - fortunes written on paper strips, sold at the shrine. You never know what you get and honestly, I will never do that again after a bad experience with these many years ago... not that I say getting a curse omikuji actually will cause having bad luck in your life, but somehow it really doesn't feel good.

Possibly a fan shaped omikuji, but I am not sure.

So much for the first part.
Visiting this matsuri (festival) on the first day of the new year has become a real tradition in our life. And on this blog, too ;)

Back with more!

A Sneak Preview

Finally... Happy New Year!
Two very slow, a bit lazy but also busy weeks have come to an end. Everybody is back at school/ work, the laundry which traditionally had been piling up for a while, due to reasons of superstition is almost done and I have successfully fought with Flickr over the upload of my New Year's photos.
For some reason I didn't manage to upload them this morning yesterday (and then ran out of time and could not finish this posting ) but it seems to work again. So I can show you some pictures later (which has become the next day now).
The photo you see above was taken on the train when coming home from our New Year's walk. Not only did we go to the Shrine we usually visit on January 1st ( はつもうで hatsumoude, first visit of a shrine in the new year), we also went to a nearby mall to snatch a fukubukuro lucky bag from Lupicia (tea store). I really loved my bag last year and will enjoy the new one just the same, I am sure.

In the picture there is also a cardigan I finished back in August. My favourite ever since. I keep on forgetting taking photos of it because I always think I should steam it a bit to make it look more virgin, and then forget about the photos again. I am wearing it everyday. The yarn (Beaverslide, discontinued 2ply Fisherman Weight in Granite) is one of my favourites. So natural, soft and not soft at the same time, rustic. The pattern is uncomplicated. A quick knit, very simple and so versatile. I learned to do the mattress stitch for this cardigan and the seams look so great, I am wearing it inside out almost every other time, just flipping sides when putting it off.
I thought it's a good opportunity to mention the cardigan now since it slipped into a photo incidentally , even when you cannot see it properly. I will try to remember taking better pictures of it, though.

I hope you had a good start into the new year.
Thank you so much for your well wishes for the New Year. And thank you for stopping by and taking the time to read.
I wish you health and happiness throughout 2010!

counting again, 31

That was it. 2009 is over.
It has been a year of changes. A year that was quite challenging for some of you, a year that wasn't easy for many. A year of decisions, a year to be brave, a year to be patient.
But here we are, December 31. A fresh new year just around the corner.

Hope it will be a happy one for all of you!