Out With the Old, In With the New! - Japanese New Year

[yaschan]

This week's Top Story is about the Japanese New Year:
http://hanami.ath.cx/topstory2512.html

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There is no other month as crowded with various tasks and duties as December is for Japanese housewife. Doing some major year-end house cleaning and preparing different foods and dishes is only part of their tasks.

Osechi-ryori is the typical Japanese New Year's food. It contains various different dishes that have meaning, such as good harvest, fertility, prosperity and so on. No matter how hard you would look for - you can never find osechi-ryori in Japanese restaurant menu. It is only ate in Japanese home, and only in new year..

[deadhippo]

I have also heard of the tradition of neshogatsu. Basically it is a custom where you spend all day in bed. Interesting but a terrible waste of time.
The kanji are as follows. the first kanji means sleep and the final two together mean new years.
寝正月

[yaschan]

oh! I see. That's interesting. May I add that to my article?
Well if you have someone with you or nice DVD's or comic, it's not so bad..

[deadhippo]

Please add that,　I'm glad to be able to provide you with info for a change.