J a p a n e s e　　N e w　　Y e a r　　L i n k s

Internet tour of O-shoogatsu related sites:

1997 is the Year of the Ox (or cow, as is often the take-off in Japan), which is based on the 12 year cycles within the Chinese calendar, with each year represented by an animal. The Chinese New Year actually begins in February, but some of the Japanese New Year customs are based on the Chinese New Year. Nekochan was born in the Year of the Monkey, which is a good thing...(^^;)

・Chinese Animal Years: also tells you what famous people were born within each animal year.

・Chinese New Year links by Chinascape

・Hinoeuma Home Page learn about the Hinoeuma, Year of the Fiery Horse, that comes once every sixty years (next one due in 2026). Also has some descriptions of the Japanese calendar system, etc.

・Cows Caught in the Web

・Cow Liberation Front

・The Cow Simulator

・VirtualCow Experiment

Send your own virtual Nengajoo (New Year's card):

・netn@vi Greeting Mail: send your own virtual Xmas card, nengajoo, or message cards

A typical custom for Japanese O-shoogatsu is to tour the local shrines (omairi) and pray for good luck, and it is generally a family affair so it would be akin to attending mass on Christmas Eve in the West. Here are some links for a 'virtual omairi':

・Ikuta Shrine--A New Shrine Culture Magazine has a virtual omairi tour of the shrine.

・Kawasaki Daishi

・Ise Shrine

・Rakunan offers a clickable map of shrines.

・Aichi Shrine

Japanese New Year's food:

・Bob & Angie's Kitchen: recipes in English

・O-zoni Page shows pictures of o-zoni from different areas in the Chubu region of Japan.　　　　

Other New Year's and miscellaneous links:

・Countdown show (E/J): countdown to the 21st century...

・Mt. Fuji live 24 hours

・Outdoor Cams in Japan: including Nekochan's alma mater, NANZAN UNIVERSITY

・EarthCam: a directory of all the live cam sites worldwide

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