A mixed of modern and traditional life is what Japan can offer to tourists, making it one of the top places most visited by foreigners from different sides of the world. The historical sites and culture could amaze you as it is still awake even at this very modern time and is open for public viewing. Beautiful buildings like the Tokyo Tower, traditional food from sushi to sashimi, hot springs in Nagano, mountains like the very famous Mt Fuji, and many more are the spots you should not forget to visit once you arrive in this country. No matter what season it is, Japan offers the best travel experience!
JAPAN – IMPORTANT AND INTERESTING FACTS
- Japan is made up of 6,852 islands. Island is defined as land more than 100 m in circumference, of which 430 are inhabited.
- The highest point in Japan in Mount Fuji, which stands at 3,776m (12,388ft).
- Japan is the largest automobile producer in the world with an annual production of 9.9 million automobiles in 2012 They manufacture brand cars such as Toyota, Honda, Daihatsu, Nissan, Suzuki, Mazda, Mitsubishi, Subaru, Isuzu, Kawasaki, Yamaha, and Mitsuoka.
- Japan suffers 1,500 earthquakes every year since the small island chain nation within the Pacific ring of fire, Japan will always have more than her fair share of natural disasters.
- Japan has more than 50,000 people who are over 100 years old. Japan’s birth rate is so low that adult diapers are sold more than baby diapers.
- 98% of all adoptions in Japan are of male adults, so that family businesses can remain within the family.
- The Japanese who survived the Titanic crash was called a coward in his country for not dying with the other passengers.
- Japan and Russia still haven’t signed a peace treaty to end World War II due to the Kuril Islands dispute.
- Around 24 billion pairs of chopsticks are used in Japan each year.
- Black cats are considered to bring good luck in Japan. While in other countries, black cats are considered as bad luck.
- To minimize contact between the unclean toilet floor and the clean floor associated with the rest of the house, Japanese individuals may wear plastic ‘toilet slippers.’ These will be located at the toilet door and must be removed on exiting the area.
- Many Hot springs and public bathhouses in Japan ban customers with tattoos from entering.
JAPAN – COOL, FUNNY AND FUN FACTS
- Japanese Trains are totally cool and is among the World’s most punctual. Their average delay is just 18 seconds.
- Only in Japan. Square Watermelons are grown by Japanese farmers for easier stack and store.
- In Japan there are more pets than children. At 21.3 million, the number of registered pet and dogs and cats now outnumbers the total number of children under the age of 15, at 16.5 million.
- In Japan, 90% of mobile phones are waterproof because youngsters use them even in the shower.
- In Japan, there is a Cat Cafe where you can go to drink coffee and hang out with cats for hours.
- Japan has 5.52 million vending machines. Most Japanese vending machines aren’t much different to those found in Europe. It is their location and contents that are remarkable. You can expect to find them next to ancient temples and even at the summit of Mount Fuji, with a wide selection of goods ranging from eggs to underwear.
- In Japan, there’s a building with a highway passing through it. Gate Tower Building is a 16-story office building in Fukushima-ku, Osaka, Japan. It is notable for the highway that passes through the building.
- In Japan, KFC is a typical feast of Christmas Eve. Although Japan doesn’t traditionally celebrate Christmas, KFC outlets became popular among foreigners as they couldn’t find a whole chicken or turkey elsewhere during the festive season.
- There’s an island in Japan that’s full of rabbits. Okunoshima is a small island located in Japan’s Inland Sea, that has become something of a tourist attraction due to its floppy eared population.
- Kanso Restaurant is a surprisingly popular Japanese restaurant that only serves canned food. Instead of providing a menu, those who dine there have the opportunity to select their meal from the shelves that adorn the walls and are supplied plastic cutlery to enjoy the contents of their can.
JAPAN – HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL FACTS
- Japan hosted the 1964 Summer Olympic games in Tokyo and will again in 2020. They also hosted the 1972 and 1998 Winter Olympic Games in Sapporo and Nagano, respectively.
- The first novel, The Tale of Genji, was written in 1007 by a Japanese noble woman, Murasaki Shikibu.
- It was customary in ancient Japan for women to blacken their teeth with dye as white teeth were considered ugly. This practice persisted until the late 1800’s.
- In 2011, an earthquake of magnitude 9.0 hit Japan and created a tsunami which resulted in much devastation. Japan sits along the “Pacific Ring of Fire”, so has many volcanoes and experiences many earthquakes.
- Raised floors help indicate when to take off shoes or slippers. At the entrance to a home in Japan, the floor will usually be raised about 6 inches indicating you should take off your shoes and put on slippers.
- The World’s Oldest Company operated in Japan from 578 AD to 2006.
- During WWII, Japan bombed China with fleas infected with bubonic plague.
- The number of Chinese killed by the Japanese during WWII is greater than the number of Jews killed in the Holocaust.
- In Japan, 685 kids were rushed to hospitals in 1997 after an intense Pokemon episode that caused dizziness, vomiting and seizures.
- During WWII, Japan received Jewish refugees and rejected the resulting Nazi German protests.
- Japan has been in the top three of the countries with most cars manufactured since the 1960s, surpassing Germany.
