Seijin no hi ¹, the coming of age day, is celebrated by japanese people on the 2nd monday of January to mark the transition to adulthood. Adult in Japan is legally defined as 20 years and above. So this day is celebrated with special cerimonies. "During the Edo period (1603-1868), boys had their forelocks cropped off, and girls had their teeth dyed black. In the past boys marked their transition to adulthood when they were around 15, and girls celebrated their coming of age when they turned 13 or so. It wasn’t until 1876 that 20 became the legal age of adulthood. " says ChinaDaily. Yesterday when I asked about the day to Tanaka sensei, she told me jokingly that now it takes time for them to mature. Nowadays, males generally wear suits to their coming-of-age ceremony, but a lot of females still choose to wear traditional furisode （as in this photo）–a special type of kimono for unmarried women with extra-long sleeves and elaborate designs.

So yesterday, bicycling on my way to the lab, bumped into a lot of these colorful kimonos and no need to say, that made my day

^{1. seijin no hi: seijin = adult. hi = day (pronounced like he). adult’s day}