How to Have a Japanese Valentine's Day

While Valentine's Day isn't celebrated much outside of the United States, Japan has taken to the day of lovers, but in a distinctly Japanese way. On Feb. 14, schoolgirls, housemothers and working women go into overdrive by making, buying and presenting chocolate treats to the boys and men they like. This is a way of declaring love or affection to the opposite sex. And at the end of the day, some people find romance, while others just have a lot of chocolate. Try starting a Japanese Valentine's Day tradition at your home.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Chocolate treats

1. Learn about the Japanese system of determining what kind of chocolate to give to whom. Because Valentine's Day in Japan is all about giving chocolate to the men in your life, the system is based on how well you know or like the men to whom you give chocolate.

2. Give chocolate to almost all the men you interact with daily if you are a woman or girl. What type of chocolate you give to them depends on how much you love the person.

3. Buy giri-choco, which means obligation chocolate, if you associate with someone in a work or school situation, but don't have any romantic feelings for them. Obligation chocolate could be defined as the mini snack-sized chocolate bars. This is the cheap chocolate; you give it to men you appreciate, but on whom don't want to spend lots of money.

4. Give honmei-choco, which means homemade chocolate, to the men to whom you want to show love or affection. This chocolate is usually handmade, but a really nice box of handcrafted chocolates from a chocolatier also suffices.

5. Pair chocolates with a nice dinner if you already love the person, and they love you as well. Handmaking chocolate truffles or miniature chocolate cakes are another way to show your love to someone with whom you already are in a relationship.

Tips & Warnings

• Because all of the men get mounds of chocolate on Valentine's Day, the Japanese have created a separate day for women on March 15, called White Day. This is a day in which men give the women, from whom they received chocolate, gifts that are colored white. Yes, white chocolate does count.
• Don't give men you don't love gifts of homemade chocolate-this will send confusing signals. Best stick with the store-bought chocolate for work associates and schoolfriends.

[tanimytani]

on 2/3/2010 White Day is celebrated on the 14th of March, not the 15th.

[gizelle]

on 10/12/2007 thankz for d info. it was great. ;)