Even though Christmas isn’t that widely celebrated by the Japanese the month of December is full of drinking parties and celebrations to see out the end of the year and get ready to bring in the new one. I’ve never attached that much importance to Christmas but having all these year end drinking parties does atleast give me some kind of feeling i used to get back home in the lead up to Christmas, even if the  purpose of them differs somewhat. 

In a busy week full of Bonenkai , a Japanese tradition which means “forget the year gathering”, the local Karaoke bar i often frequent has decided to close it’s doors and re-open in the new year as an Izakaya Restaurant.

Tonight it’s on again as Mama-san closes the doors on Sudo 1, a local Karaoke bar than if nothing else was great Japanese practice for me. Late nights in a bar frequented by typical Japanese Salary Man types is a great way for me to practice my Japanese communication skills and on the odd occasion a spot of Nampa. Actually, last night at my local Sushi bar, as the clock struck 11, it dawned on me i could justify my many hours of drinking each night by calling it “Japanese Conversation Classes”, so from here on in, i will.

{ 12 comments }