Photo Journal: Fancy and festive

A variety of "kadomatsu" New Year decorations made of reeds that grow along the Kitakami River in Ishinomaki, Miyagi Prefecture, are seen in this photo taken on Dec. 19, 2016, as the making of reed kadomatsu decorations hit its busiest days of the year. Local farmer Goro Chiba, 71, started making these decorations that are put out in front of houses during the New Year holiday with his family in 2006, but the March 2011 tsunami swept away his home, leaving his wife Teruko, 58 at the time, and his mother-in-law Yoshino, 81 at the time, dead. He has continued making the reed kadomatsu and will ship some 100 sets this year. (Mainichi)