Posted 2016/12/8
People in the prefectures attach great importance to the Winter Solstice. Several days previously, friends and relatives present gifts of food to one another. The streets are crowded with people carrying baskets and boxes which are generally called "winter solstice trays". The night before is called Winter Solstice Eve.
On that night families invite guests to food and drinks. This dinner is called the festival banquet. Married women who happen to be staying with their parents must return to their husbands. Families, rich and poor alike, buy food to offer to their ancestors. Some put up the portraits of their ancestors. The ceremonies and customs are more splendid than those of the ordinary festivals. Therefore, the saying goes, "The Winter Solstice is as important as the New Year".
