JAPAN - An Overview

Every country has their individual boundary differentiations. Like STATES in US, Australia, India etc; Japan is divided into prefectures and Japan has 47 prefectures in total.

 

View From 450th Floor of Tokyo SkyTree

The 47 prefectures are collectively referred as todofuken.

• 43 standard prefectures (ken)
• Two urban prefectures (fu): Osaka and Kyoto
• One metropolis prefecture (to): Tokyo
• One circuit/territory prefecture (dō): Hokkaido

Tokyo Sky Tree - Night Lights

The 47 prefectures of Japan are also commonly grouped into 8 geographical regions called CHIHO. 

Religious Culture in Japan : Japan has 2 dominant religious traditions : 

• Shinto (神道) is the ancient animist religion of traditional Japan, and Buddhism officially arrived in 552 CE. Today, the two faiths are clearly separated, most Buddhist elements have long since been removed from most Shinto shrines, and the ceremonies are clearly separated.
• Christianity has never gained wide acceptance in Japan since Japan's opening to the world, and while it is no longer persecuted, only a small percentage of Japanese are Christian.

Climate :

The Japanese are proud of their four seasons, and the travellers with a flexible travel schedule should aim for spring or autumn.

Spring is one of the best time of year to visit Japan. 

• The weather use to be warm (not hot), and there's not too much of rain as well.
• With famous Cherry Blossoms (SAKURA) in March - April, Japan is painted with Pink across the country. 
• For the southern half of the country, cherry blossom season typically is from End of March to Early April.
• For the northern half, its season is from mid / late April to Early May. 

Summer starts with a light rainy season in June and turns into a fire ball in July - August, with extreme humidity and the temperature heading as high as 35°C. 

• People use to head towards any of the nearby hill stations to avoid from heat, such as Oku-tama, Northern Hokkaido or the mountains of Chubu and Tohoku. 

Autumn, starting in September, is also an wonderful time to be in Japan. 

• Temperatures and humidity become more tolerable, fair days are common and fall colors can be just as impressive as cherry blossoms. 
• However, in early autumn typhoons often hit the southern and western parts of Japan. 
• The ideal time for autumn colors for the southern half of the country is typically in the mid of November.
• Mountainous areas and those farther north have their's earlier.

Winter is a good time to go skiing or on-sen. 

• Heading south to Okinawa Island, will provides some relief. 
• There is usually heavy snow in Hokkaido and northeast Japan due to the cold wind blasts from Siberia.
• Note that the Pacific coast of Honshu (where most major cities are located) has milder winters than the Sea of Japan coast. 
• Late winter also has the plum blossoms which precede the cherry blossoms.

Get In :

• Citizens of Andorra, Australia, Argentina, Bahamas, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Europe, Guatemala, Honduras, Hong Kong, Israel, Macau, Macedonia, Mauritius, Mexico, Monaco, New Zealand, San Marino, Singapore, South Korea, Suriname, Switzerland, Tunisia, United States/American Samoa, and Uruguay can visit visa-free for up to 90 days.
• Citizens of Brunei and Thailand can visit visa-free for up to 15 days.
• Citizens of Austria, Germany, Ireland, Liechtenstein, Mexico, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom can apply for the extended stay of 6 months, with Japan's Ministry of Justice.
• Citizens of Barbados, Lesotho, Malaysia, Serbia, and Turkey can visit visa-free for up to 90 days, with a biometric passport only.
• Citizens of Taiwan can visit visa-free for 90 days, if the passport includes a personal identification number.
• Citizens of Indonesia with a biometric Indonesian passport who've been issued a Visa Waiver Registration Certificate from the Japanese Embassy or Consulate in Indonesia can visit visa-free for up to 15 days.
• Citizens of China traveling via cruise ships do not require a visa, but must leave and get back on the same cruise ship in order to qualify.
• All other nationalities must obtain at least a "temporary visitor" visa prior to arrival, which is generally valid for a stay, up to 90 days.