Day 180 ( Old People Day ) - Monday, September 15, 2008
Day 180 - Old People Day
Ok so today is an holday in Japan known as KEIRO NO HI or Respect for the aged day.
This National Holiday celebrates a traditional Confucian value, respect for one's elders. Formerly, one's 60th birthday was very important, not just for being an advanced age but because it signified the completion of the cycle of the Zodiac. Today with people living longer, the emphasis has largely shifted to the 70th birthday. Cities and towns prepare gifts for residents who are over 70 years of age. Now prepare to be shocked... Approximately how many people do you think is currently living in Japan, over the age of 100????
Time is up...and the answer is a whopping over 30,000. Now of course by default, if you are the oldest person in Japan, it therefore stands to reason that you are the oldest person in the world :) ... That person just happens to be one of the over 5000 males in Japan who are over 100 and he is 112 years old.
Anyway, this morning being a holiday and all, I went jogging with my friend, then drove her to the bus stop in the rain to take the bus back to Osaka... I then drove home and I think I spent the entire day on the internet, reading blogs from other people and watching Japanese Animation... I am particularly interested in this very philosophical blog called http://xenlogic.wordpress.com/ ... I found it quite interesting and it has some mind-boggling stuff on it...
Well that's all for today.. peace
Ok so today is an holday in Japan known as KEIRO NO HI or Respect for the aged day.
This National Holiday celebrates a traditional Confucian value, respect for one's elders. Formerly, one's 60th birthday was very important, not just for being an advanced age but because it signified the completion of the cycle of the Zodiac. Today with people living longer, the emphasis has largely shifted to the 70th birthday. Cities and towns prepare gifts for residents who are over 70 years of age. Now prepare to be shocked... Approximately how many people do you think is currently living in Japan, over the age of 100????
Time is up...and the answer is a whopping over 30,000. Now of course by default, if you are the oldest person in Japan, it therefore stands to reason that you are the oldest person in the world :) ... That person just happens to be one of the over 5000 males in Japan who are over 100 and he is 112 years old.
Anyway, this morning being a holiday and all, I went jogging with my friend, then drove her to the bus stop in the rain to take the bus back to Osaka... I then drove home and I think I spent the entire day on the internet, reading blogs from other people and watching Japanese Animation... I am particularly interested in this very philosophical blog called http://xenlogic.wordpress.com/ ... I found it quite interesting and it has some mind-boggling stuff on it...
Well that's all for today.. peace
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