Garden eels get an 11:11 a.m. lunch at Kyoto Aquarium on Chin-anago Day

If you look at a garden eel poking out of the sand, it looks a lot like the number 1. So it was only a matter of time before Japan gave them their own day.

November 11 is Chin-anago (garden eel) Day. The date has the most 1s of the year, and garden eels live in colonies. To mark it, Kyoto Aquarium in Kyoto's Shimogyo Ward held a special feeding at 11:11 a.m. called "Chin-anago Feeding Time".

Families gathered at the tank to watch the eels stretch out of the sand to catch their food. Three-year-old Seisho Oyama peered in and said they were "squirmy and cute". Someone else in the crowd wondered what the eels' bodies look like under the sand.

The day has plenty of company. The Japan Anniversary Association says 73 anniversaries were registered for November 11 as of the end of October, including Pork Bun Day and Umaibo (a snack) Day. Only August 8 has more.

The aquarium's "Chin-anago Day 2026" event is still running. Until November 15, a photo spot features 111 garden eel plush toys and 111 Nishiki-anago (splendid garden eel) plush toys.