Category: Japan

Japan is the island nation located in East Asia and the country is known as the ‘Land of Rising Sun’. Japan consists of 6,852 islands and the largest four islands are Shikoku, Kyushu, Hokkaido and Honshu. All these four islands occupy 97% of land area. Japan’s islands are mostly mountainous and several islands are volcanic also. Mount Fuji which is the highest peak of Japan is volcanic. Tokyo is the largest metropolitan of the world by having more than 30 million people and the city is also the capital of the country. The first known inhabitance of Japan is around 30,000 BC.

Japan is located in volcanic zone on Pacific Ring of Fire. The number of active volcanoes in Japan is 108. Japan is prone to destructive earthquakes that result in tsunamis. Japan has constitutional monarchy but limited power for the Emperor. The power of the country is mainly on the Prime Minister and other members elected to the Diet. The present Emperor of Japan is Akihito and Crown Prince is Naruhito. Diet act as a bicameral parliament which consists of House of Representatives and House of Councilors. Japan is in the third position among the largest economies of the world.

Japan is in fourth position among the largest exporters of the world and fifth among the largest importers of the world. Some of the major industries of Japan are real estate, insurance, banking, transportation, retailing, construction and telecommunications. The population of Japan is 126 million and the society is homogenous culturally and linguistically with small number of foreigners. The dominant ethnic group of Japan is Yamato people and the minority groups are indigenous Ryukyuan and Ainu people. Burakumin is a social minority group. Japan rates as one among the highest life expectancy of the world with 81.25 years.

Among the population 84-96% of the people are Shintoists or Buddhists. Christians in Japan is about 2% of the population. Japanese is the primary language of the country and over 99% of people speak Japanese. Ryukyuan languages and Ainu language is also spoken in Japan. There are several tourist destinations in Japan and the major destination is Tokyo. Tokyo is a place of tradition as well as modernity and the city is also the economic hub of Japan. Some of the major tourist places in Tokyo are temples, shrines, parks, gardens, shopping areas, Izu Island and Ogasawara Island.

Hiroshima is also a favorite tourist spot in Japan and place remembers us about the atom bomb explosion of 1945. You can find The Peace Park, Atomic Bomb Museum, Shrine of Itsukushima and scenic beauty in Hiroshima. If you are an adventurous person, you can climb on the highest peak of Japan, Mount Fuji. Mount Fuji is surrounded by scenic beauty. Kyoto is another favorite destination of tourists which is the cradle of culture and history of Japan. You can see traditional buildings, museums, shrines and ancient temples in Kyoto. In Osaka, you can visit the Himeji Castle which is recognized as the World Heritage Site by UNESCO. Other tourist destinations are Nagasaki, Koyasan, Iwakuni, Nijo Castle, Tokyo Port Wild Bird Park, Basho Museum and Tokyo Disney Sea.