Kimonos

We haven't seen a lot of people wearing kimono yet, most likely because the weather isn't quite warm enough, though I have seen a few women at some of the temples and shrines with kimonos (see below) and of course, the gorgeous brides at the wedding ceremonies wearing beautiful silk kimono that cost more than luxury vehicles. I think a lot of people still think that everyone runs around Japan in kimonos, but they don't; not even the members of the legislature or people in more formal posts. As Jeremy commented the other day: "The members of the Diet should be wearing kimono. Why are they dressed so Western?" Indeed. Indeed.

To be honest, I'm scared to death of kimono, though I find them beautiful. Those who know me know my penchant for ruining at least a dozen t-shirts a year with spaghetti sauce, oil, whatever. Yeah. I would be afraid to wear a kimono in the bathroom, near dirt of any kind, or basically do anything while wearing it. I can just hear my dad in my ear everytime I spill something on myself, "You wear your food well, my dear." Some things never change.

So I was happy when Jeremy decided to buy a kimono because I could basically tag along and watch the whole process without actually having to attempt to wear it or humor the sales staff that I might be interested in buying one for myself. We went to a little shop in Azabu Juban near TUJ which had a saleswoman who devoted hours of attention to Jeremy.

There's this great scene in "My Big Fat Greek Wedding," where the dad tries to convince some little girls that kimono is the derivative of the Greek word χειμώνας (winter, because in winter, you need to wear a robe, of course). Cute thought, but kimono (着物) literally means "something worn" or more generically, clothing. While the most desirable kimono are in different grades of silk, there are cotton kimono as well. Women's kimono consist of about 12 or more pieces that must be worn in order for the kimono outfit to be complete, but men can get away with fewer than 5 pieces, even during formal occasions.

Here are some photos of Jeremy in his fabulous kimono taken at Takanawa shrine, which is right next to our apartment building. Although the bottom right one is at Lawson's (a convenience store) that was too funny not to post.