17/02/22
Tomochin Taikan and Meikan Masuo
Hey guys! Meikan here. I'm finally back from my short break. Hopefully, you didn't miss me, haha! Today, myself and Tomochin have finished working on the report about Valentine's Day! Hope you enjoy readin' our precious work!
To start off, I will be discussing the history of Valentine's Day and why it is celebrated.
Saint Valentine was a third-century Roman saint, who is commemorated in Western Christianity on the 14th of February (or the 6th of June for eastern orthodoxy). The day named after him is a day for courtly love. If you didn’t know, St. Valentine worked as a clergyman, being a priest alongside that who ministered Christians who were persecuted. The rules set by the Roman Empire, or, Claudius II, was that the youth, under any circumstances, could not get married. Saint Valentine was against this and so he encouraged the youth to get married in the sacramental bond through the church, marrying them in secret to avoid the edict. This was another way he helped people of his faith to survive and have a moment of freedom away from the rules of the Romans.
Saint Valentine later, unfortunately, became a martyr (someone who dies for their religion), after he refused to deny Christ by the order of Emperor Claudius. He was arrested for aiding persecuted Christians and being caught in the act of helping Christian couples marry. He was later executed on the 14th of February (the day we commemorate his death), the year 270 A.D.
Now, more about what we stereotypically do when we celebrate Valentine's Day over here in Japan. Over to you, Taikan!
The city-wide Valentine’s festival featured a lot of love-themed attractions! The pier had a year-round fair with multiple rides set up already, which were simply turned much more in favor of the holiday. The teacups, carousel and the swing ride were displayed in beautiful pink and red tones in order to celebrate the lovers’ day!
Apart from the default spiced up, the end of the pier was populated by some swan boats! You and a friend, loved one or even just yourself could sit on the swan boats and enjoy the tranquility of Karakura during the heartfelt season. Citizens also frequented the two photobooths, one of which was a genuine booth and the other some valentines day backdrop with a professional photographer! Many people lined up to get a quirky snapshot of them that evening, which were all posted on a drive that could be accessed by the city later on after the event had concluded!
Finally, apart from the booths there was a singular attraction left. Upon paying shrine staff a mere 1,500 yen, you could have your name and someone else’s written on the love board! It was a sort of message board for people to celebrate their love with one another and publicize their adoration - how cute!
In Japan, it’s traditional that the female in the relationship gives the boy she admires chocolates (as well as to other significant men in her life), and this is reciprocated by the male a month later on March 14th! This tradition doesn’t apply to Karakura, where we see people in relationships of many different gender identities and sexualities. This proves that modernisation of tradition isn’t necessarily always negative, and our city is different in it’s own special way. This was Meikan Masuo and Tomochin Taikan, signing out for now.
