前に何度か書きましたが、今日は日本ではひな祭[まつ]りの日です。女の子がいる家では、今日、女の子たちの幸[しあわ]せを祈[いの]ってお祝[いわ]いします。
この日に向けて、2月から特別[とくべつ]な人形[にんぎょう](= dolls)を飾[かざ]ります(= to decorate; to put something out)。そして、明日、3月4日に全部しまいます(= put something away)。下の写真[しゃしん]はとてもゴージャスなひな人形です。ふつうの家ではこのような人形は飾れません。もっと小さい人形セットを飾ります。家がとてもせまいからです（もちろん、このような人形はとても高いので、なかなか買えません！）
I wrote about this a few times in the past, but anyway it is hina matsuri (= dolls festival) today in Japan. The households with daughters celebrate today wishing their girls’ happiness and prosperity.
We put special dolls out sometime in February to celebrate the day and put the dolls away tomorrow. The following photo shows one of the most gorgeous sets of Hina dolls. Most people in Japan do not have extra space for such a big set of dolls in their house and have a much smaller set (and of course these dolls are, as you might imagine, very expensive!)
PONKICHI says:
We bought Hina dolls for our granddaughter who was born last year. There is a custom in Japan that grandparents buy a set of Hina dolls for their granddaughter to celebrate Dolls’ Festival on March 3.
As you have mentioned, houses in urban areas in Japan are usually small. Our daughter’s house is no exception. So we bought only the upper two dolls, the emperor, and the empress, so that our daughter could decorate them in her room.
Fumiko Nishimura says:
I do not remember who bought hina dolls for me; it is quite possible that my grandparents bought me them. At the moment, same as your granddaughter, I have only the emperor and the empress and they are very very small (I have slightly bigger ones at my parents’ house and I did not bring them to New Zealand!). Although the ones I have with me here now are small, they make me smile when I take them out for the dolls festival every year.