How to Write Nengajo in Japanese New Year: Step by Step.
During my first year in Tokyo, I struggled to learn how to write in Japanese. With encouragement from teachers and friends, I developed a modicum of confidence in my brushwork. I even sent out a few of my first nengajo before going off to spend the holidays in the countryside at my friend's home that first year. On New Year's day, I rose at dawn.
Writing nengajo takes a long time, however, it is worth it. Your friends will remember your painstaking efforts throughout the following year, and it's a real pleasure to wake up on New Year's Day and find your mailbox chock-a-block with greeting cards advising you to take care in the cold weather, enjoy the spring and have a fabulous New Year instead of the usual pile of bills.
Thanks to the hard work of the postal service, the Nengajo almost always arrives on New Year’s Day. If you are thinking of sending a Nengajo, make sure to mail them by Dec. 25th with “Nenga” printed in red ink below the stamp. Also, if you look at the address side of Nengajo, you’ll notice there are several numbers at the bottom.
But last year I painted a tiger for the Year of the Tiger and our own nengajo, and this year, dadgummit, I had better paint a rabbit! My wife’s grandmother also asked me to design her a nengajo. So it’s a bit early for New Year’s talk, but just the right timing for printing up and hand-writing and mailing 100 postcards.
You shouid write Nengajo to your coworkers, to your friends, and to the people who have helped you out during the year. You can. On the other side of the card, write the address ofthe person you are sending to, (make sure to include their postal code: 080-0025 etc) and.
Poetry Friday--Nengajo This past Monday, New Year's Day, post office workers in Japan scurried to deliver billions (yes, that is correct, billions) of postcards with the greeting, Akemashite Omedetou Gozaimasu, Happy New Year.
I have several different versions of Word on different computers and can't find a way to print Japanese New Year's cards (nengajo). I have MS Word 2010 on an English version and on the ribbon Japanese greetings is highlighted and clickable, but not Japanese postcard. On a Japanese laptop I have MS Word 2007, and cannot find Nengajo either.