Hatsuri and Yumi hara

And all this time here I thought that Japanese people missed out since they don't have a "Black Friday" and after-Thanksgiving sales. Apparently they do - it just happens to fall on January 2. I guess technically it's January 2 - it just starts in some places at 4:30 am! Sasebo - where I was for Oshougatsu this year - is famous for its "hatsuri" - the first sale of the year. Not being much of a shopper myself, I only went along to see what it was all about. I'm not entirely convinced it was worth it for me to get up at 4:45am, but at least Mama-chan got a really good deal on a Yuri-chan's things for "Hina Matsuri" (Doll Festival - you'll read about that in March). Most stores also had "lucky bags" which were full of stuff for a set price. I guess they were good deals, because they went fast! We were home again by 8am, and after taking a nap, I joined the family for lunch and a trip up to the top of Yumihara, where we got a spectacular view of the city and the 99 Islands. Unfortunately the light wasn't cooperating, so the photos of us ended up being more interesting than the scenery.
You can check out Sasebo online at http://www.sasebo99.com/english/99shima/index.html or by clicking on this post's title.