It has grown on me!: Starbucks You Are Here Collection Mug

Starbucks You Are Here Collection Mug - Japan (Winter Edition)

My husband and I have been collecting Starbucks You Are Here Collection Mugs which are only released locally. As I mentioned in my previous entry, we were able to get a Starbucks You Are Here Japan mug while we were visiting Fukuoka, Japan in January, 2018. Then, when he was on his business trip in Japan in November, 2018, he found this new Starbucks You Are Here Collection Japan Winter Edition Mug there. This mug was just released in Japan on November 22 in 2018. Starbucks Japan released its tumbler and ornament as well. He was very lucky that he was in Japan on the day it was released! Because Starbucks You Are Here Japan mugs have been very popular for foreign tourists visiting Japan, those are usually selling out pretty quickly. :)

Anyway, I'm going to share this Starbucks You Are Here Collection Japan mug with you.

Starbucks You Are Here Collection Mug - Japan (Winter Edition)

【Tsubaki Flowers】The red flowers pictured in this mug are tsubaki (ツバキ, 椿), Japanese camellia. If you live in Japan, you've probably seen tsubaki there. When I was a child, my family has tsubaki trees in our yard, and I also saw some tsubaki trees in my neighborhood. Tsubaki blooms during cold season in Japan. By the way, if you love Japanese beauty products, you have probably know Shiseido Tsubaki hair care products, which contain tsubaki oil extract.

【Mount Fuji】Mount Fuji, which is called Fujisan (富士山) in Japan, is the highest mountain in Japan. It's located in Shizuoka prefecture (静岡県) and Yamanashi prefecture (山梨県), but you can also see it from Tokyo on a clear sunny day. During cold season, you can see beautiful Fuji with a snow cap.

【Red-Crowned Cranes】Cranes are called tsuru (鶴, ツル) in Japan. Specially, red-crowned cranes, Tancho (タンチョウ, タンチョウヅル), are believed a symbol of Japan. You can see the pictures of red-crowned cranes in Japanese 1,000-yen bills (Soseki Natsume version). During cold season, you can see red-crowned cranes dancing in Hokkaido, Japan.

Starbucks You Are Here Collection Mug - Japan (Winter Edition)

【Crab Nabe】In Japan, a crab is called kani (カニ) and crab nabe is called kani nabe (カニ鍋) . The season of Snow Crab, zuwaigani (ズワイガニ), is November through March. Nabe (鍋, 鍋料理) is a variety of Japanese hot pot dishes and winter is a nabe season in Japan.

【Sushi】You can eat sushi all year round. If you are a sushi lover, you might want to know the season of fresh fish. Maguro (マグロ, 鮪), hirame (ヒラメ, 平目) and buri (ブリ, 寒ブリ, 鰤) taste the best in winter. (Maguro means tuna, hirame means halibut, and buri means yellowtail.)

Starbucks You Are Here Collection Mug - Japan (Winter Edition)

【Japanese Castle】In Japan, there are many Japanese castles such as Osaka Castle (大阪城) and Nagoya Castle (名古屋城). On snowy days, Japanese castles are dusted with snow.

【Daruma Doll】A daruma doll (だるま) is a bearded man doll and is a good luck charm. You can select a goal or wish and paint in one of eyes. When you achieved the goal, you can paint in the second eye. Daruma dolls are selling very well as one of traditional Japanese New Year's lucky charms in the end of December through early January in Japan.

Starbucks You Are Here Collection Mug - Japan (Winter Edition)

【Snow Dome】Snow domes with a cave dug are called kamakura (かまくら) in Japan. You can possibly make kamakura in yukiguni (雪国), which is areas in Japan with heavy or deep snows such as Hokkaido and Akita, in winter. A large kamakura has a room for a few to several people. People make kamakura, light it up and enjoy hot foods like soup and mochi in it.