Japan Travel Photos and Overview

JAPAN AT A GLANCE

AREA

Japan has a land area of around 380,000 km2. This is about 1/25th of the size of the USA about half the size of Chile, around 1.5 times that of the UK, and about 1.3 times that of the Philippines. Some 67% of Japan's landmass is covered with forests, while farmland accounts for around 13%, making this a country with quite a large amount of greenery.

POPULATION

The total Japanese population as of October 12th, 1999 was around 126,500,000, the 9th largest population is concentrated in 3 major metropolitan areas (Tokyo, Osaka, and Nagoya) that account for 6% of the landmass.

TOKYO, CAPITAL OF JAPAN

The capital of Japan is Tokyo. This is a massive city with a population of 11.9 million. At Tokyo's centre is a cluster of government buildings such as the National Diet Building, the Supreme Court, and many ministries and agencies, making it the centre of Japanese politics. It is also an economic centre, with many companies located here. It has a good deal of cultural facilities, newspaper companies, and TV stations, making it also a centre for culture and information.

JAPANESE LANGUAGE

The language spoken in Japan is Japanese. To write it, we use a combination of Chinese kanji characters and two uniquely Japanese phonetic scripts called hiragana and katakana.

JAPAN'S SEASONS

Japan's climate is not uniform, as its landmass stretches far to the north and south. But generally the country enjoys the four seasons for spring, summer, autumn, and winter. The Japanese particularly appreciate the changing of these seasons and like to tune their daily lives to them.

	SPRING (MARCH - MAY)
	The cold of winter abates, a warm wind blows from the south, and beautiful blossoms of plum and cherry trees start to appear. The school and working year starts on April 1st, coinciding with this season.
	SUMMER (JUNE - AUGUST)
	With the exception of Hokkaido, Japan is visited by the tsuyu rainy season in June to July. But when it ends, summer comes on in full force, and the heat and humidity can be tremendous. Schools and companies have their summer breaks, and many people enjoy leisure activities like camping, going to the seaside or swimming pools, and mountaineering.
	AUTUMN (SEPTEMBER - NOVEMBER)
	The heat and humidity of summer lingers on into autumn, when typhoons start to strike, especially in western Japan. This combained with heavy rains makes the climate unstable. But once this period has passed, we have the beatiful sight of autumn leaves and a time of fruits as we approach the harvest season.
	WINTER (DECEMBER - FEBRUARY)
	Winter in Japan is cold. Northern and central Japan receive heavy blankets of snow, offering many the pleasures of skiing.

"Japan and Tokyo Travel Photos"

Japan Travel Photos

Japan, Tokyo Travel Pictures (13 Photos)