The Land of the Rising Sun

Dominion, Volume 31, Issue 142, 12 March 1938, Page 9 (Supplement)

The Land of the Rising Sun

J7AR out in the eastern ocean, washed by the molten gold waves, lies Japan—the Land of the Rising Sun. What a mysterious, far-off land it seems to us. Yet in Japan the traveller finds a land of exquisite beauty, age-old customs, and fairy landscapes. So great a part do flowers play in the lives of Eastern people that public holidays are set apart for them to admire the blooms. For miles along the riverbank lean the blossom-cov-ered cherry trees, a sight Westerners travel half the world to see. And there are fields of dazzling azaleas, soft roses, tall feathery grass and bright irises which all help to make Japan one of Nature’s favoured countries.

And what of the little people of this Land of the Rising Sun? They are very much like the children of our own land, except, perhaps, they may be a little more unspoilt and unselfish. They are trained to be polite and gentle, and to be fond of their lessons. But they have their play hours too, and how they love the feast days when they can don their brightest kimonos and look as gay as the flowers in the fields.

One day the girls love above all others and that is the Feast of the Dolls, when the dolls which have been kept in the family for generations are brought out to be exhibited and admired. Then, on the Feast of the Flags, the litle boys play with tops and flags and kites, just as the boys do in this country. — Annie Laurie (15), Wellington.