Happy Children's Day

May 5th is Children's Day in Japan. It used to be Boy's Day, so all the decorations are male oriented. Here are some photos for your viewing pleasure.

The most prominent decorations are flying carp, or koinobori. They're supposed to make your child become a great person and are flying all over Japan well before Children's Day.

Samurai armor is also often displayed in houses with boys. Here's some armor girlbot's grandfather purchased many years ago.

It's incredibly expensive and takes up a lot of space, so if you're poor, you can buy a small cardboard one.

And it's good to know that some traditions are the same in every culture. For instance, we can all agree that children love dolls wearing helmets riding on giant carp.