Ome Daruma Market (2013)

While Westerners make (and swiftly break) New Year's resolutions, the tradition in Japan is to pick up a Daruma doll and make a few wishes. The eyes of this round, hollow-headed talisman – based on the famous 5th-6th century monk Bodhidharma – are left blank when you first buy it, but it's customary to paint in one of the pupils if your wish comes true. Get two wishes, and you'll need to take your doll to a shrine for burning at the end of the year. There are Daruma markets throughout the country at this time of year, though one of the biggest in the Tokyo area is held in Ome, a traditional centre of manufacturing for the distinctive Tama version of the doll.