“I want to go to the beach / this summer I really want to go to the beach / I have to rest …” thus begins a famous song by Vasco Rossi which brings us back to the desire for rest associated with holidays by the sea; with the arrival of summer in Italy, and beyond, the longed-for summer holidays begin with a relative assault on the beaches. In Japan, on the other hand, it is almost a shame to have to rest and the sea is not one of the most sought-after destinations.
The natsuyasumi (summer – natsu 夏, rest – yasumi 休み), i.e. the summer holidays, correspond more to the closure of schools and run roughly from the end of July to the last days of August, much depends on what the municipalities decide and from the geographical position of the various cities, for example where the summer is not too hot, the summer holidays are shorter and the winter holidays are longer.
Parents don’t have holidays in this period, so the children spend their days doing homework, spending time with their grandparents, playing with the other children in the neighborhood. In reality, it is difficult for parents, and for all Japanese employees, to ask for more than 4-5 consecutive days off, due to their very rigid culture which leads them to think they are looked down upon by colleagues and by the company in the event did not show up for work, having preferred a few days off. It is also rare for a manager or even the head of a department or a sector of the company to take responsibility for granting holidays to a colleague (holidays which are contractually due to him), older employees do not go on holidays, least of all the young ones!
However there is a period in the year when everything stops and companies close, it is the Golden week, the golden week (ゴールデンウィーク gōruden wīku) different holidays:
April 29 Emperor Hirohito’s birthday Shōwa day
3 maggio Constitution Day, Kenpō Kinenbi
May 4 Green Festival, Midori no Hi
5 maggio Children’s Day, Kodomo no Hi
It should be noted that May Day, also known as Labor Day , is not considered a national holiday, but is nevertheless guaranteed a holiday by many companies.
Most Japanese take advantage of these consecutive holidays to travel or visit their families elsewhere regions of Japan many also organize trips to places abroad, however the Japanese sea is not considered a popular destination for various reasons: first of all it is a dark sea, cold and full of jellyfish, then from mid-July there is the rainy season and therefore the beach becomes impassable
Okinawa and the seaside resorts in southern Japan are an exception, but there are no organized establishments and beaches with showers, umbrellas and sunbeds. On the other hand, the natural beauties and sunsets are without equal.
Not all Japanese are happy to have days off, there are those who fear returning to work after such a long vacation, those who are relieved at the idea of returning to the tranquility of their daily routine, others are terrified of having to open the inbox and find an infinite number of unread emails, for others the opportunity to enjoy so much time away from work becomes a source of stress and for housewives the golden week can mean a greater workload, for for this reason, they appreciate more day trips or at the weekend at the latest.
The atmosphere of celebration and vacation is breathed on weekends and summer evenings, in fact, both the cities and the countryside come alive with traditional events and festivals. The atmosphere that is created thanks to the parades, the stalls with popular games and the stands with typical Japanese food is wonderful. Also you can observe a lot of colorful fireworks.
On September 1st, the Japanese feel that summer is already over and suddenly lose their passion for fireworks and for everything that animated the summer. No municipality organizes shows anymore, the shops collect all the products and the children go back to school.
By Valeria Turino