Thanks Lisa and Ayako for telling us the Star Festival in Japan. Last year a Japanese friend also asked me where to buy a bamboo tree for this Festival for her daughter. Actually in Hong Kong when I was a boy, all families are celebrating this festival in a very quiet, romantic manner. The day is on the 7th day of July of the Lunar Caleneder. On this day, you can actually see the two very bright stars on each side of the Milky way (The Galazy?). In Hong Kong we called this Festival “The birthday of the 7th Sister – 七姐誕” and named the stars 牛郎,嬂女 which means a boy who keeps a cow and a girl who does the weaving. They can only meet once a year. During this night the girls normally allowed to stay through midnight to see these two stars to meet and make their wish (normally for a good boy friend). They also placed on the table things to offer to the ‘weaving girl’ and the ‘cow boy’ (e.g. for girls – face powder, old type of Chinese lotion, fruits ..). All boys are not allowed to take part. This festival is coming soon, but not too many families celeberate now. I am glad that the Japanese is keeping this tradition-
(They are celebrating it on the Western Calender, not the Lunar one which I think is more appropriate, you can see the weaving girl and the cow boy then in the sky).

oswald