Issue: February 2024 People visit Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo on January 3 to pray for good luck. in Tokyo, Japan. Every year, people visit shrines and temples for the first time (during the first three days) of the New Year, known as hatsumode, to pray for a healthy and successful new year. A girl dressed in a colorful kimono attends a Coming-of-Age Day celebration on January 8 in Tokyo. Seijin no hi is a public holiday to celebrate and encourage people who have become adults (18 years old). The annual celebration is held on the second Monday of January. A man in a loincloth holds a large block of ice inside a pool of freezing water during an annual midwinter purification ceremony at Teppozu Inari Shrine in Tokyo on January 14. About 87 people braved the icy water to pray for a healthy year ahead. Rodrigo Reyes is a freelance photojournalist and videographer based in Tokyo.