Happy Hinamatsuri!

March 3: Hinamatsuri, or "Girl's Festival"Today is Hinamatsuri, or "Doll's" or "Girl's Festival". Here you see our gift from a Japanese friend of a display of the dolls (ordered correctly) that are brought out in Japanese homes with young girls that celebrate their development and bring peace and happiness. Some say they are to "hope for an early marriage" (which leaving the display out AFTER March 3 is suppose to result in Hannah Jane having the unfortunate destiny of getting married "later".....(????) (basically, it can ward against evil spirts.....aaaaaaand being a spinster in life.) You see these displays all over the place, including in her school where today the students put on a Hinamatsuri production. The older (4 and 5) girls dressed in elaborate kimono dress and did several dances for the parents and teachers:

There were several dances like this by the different girls in the class. And then there was Hannah Jane's class, which for some reason, with granted little understanding on our part, performed a skit about being....a Bento box. And our daughter played the exciting roll of...

an Ebi, or SHRIMP (panko fried, at that)

(that's the fried shrimp on her head. Some of the other featured rolls were that of Broccoli, Carrots, and "Tamago" or egg.) I have yet to figure out what this has to do with 'Girl's Day' but I'll be sure to ask my Japanese friends and report back. Stay tuned, and thanks for reading...