Coolest City In Japan
If you ever come across with the possibility to visit Japan, don`t miss it. Otherwise, you will lose the opportunity of visiting a truly spectacular country, with a very interesting culture and fascinating people. Of course, if you visit Japan, you must know that the largest city in the country and one of the largest in the world is Tokyo. This city is called nowadays a metropolis because it consists of 23 city wards, 26 cities, 5 towns and 8 villages, including the Izu and Ogasawara Islands, several small Pacific Islands in the south of Japan's main island Honshu.The 23 city wards are the center of the city Tokyo and make up about one third of the metropolis' area, having twelve million residents.
Tokyo is located on the eastern side of the island Honshu and it is the world`s most populous metropolitan area with approximately 35 million people and the world`s largest metropolitan economy with a GDP of US$1.191 trillion.
Before 1686, Tokyo was known as Edo. In the 16th century, a small castle- Edo became Japan`s political center, in 1603 when Togukawa Ieyasu established his feudal government there. A few decades later, the small castle of Edo developed in one of the most populated cities.
In 1868, as a result of the Meji Restoration, the emperor and the capital were moved from Kyoto to Edo, which was renamed Tokyo- meaning "Eastern Capital". Tokyo was designed to be centered near major train stations. Although the city went through two major catastrophes in the 20th century- the 1923 Great Canto earthquake and the World War II, it recovered from both. After the World War II the city was completely rebuilt just in time for the 1964 Summer Olympics.
Tokyo is an important international finance center, it houses the headquarters of several of the world's largest investment, banks and insurance companies. After the World War II, many large firms moved their headquarters from other cities to Tokyo because that way they could have more access to the government . This trend has stopped now because of the large population in the area and the high cost of living. Tokyo was rated by the Economist Intelligence Unit as the most expensive city in the world for 14 years in a row ending in 2006.
Tokyo is Japan`s largest domestic and international hub for rail, ground, and air transportation. Rail is the primary transportation in Tokyo which has the most extensive urban railway network in the world and an equally extensive network of surface lines.
Tokyo is a well known tourist attraction- it is visited by almost five millions of foreigners anually and by approximately 400 millions of Japanese. When in Tokyo, tourists visit the various downtowns, stores, and entertainment districts throughout the neighborhoods of the special wards of Tokyo. Some very popular districts that are visited by many tourists are: Shibuya and Harajuku which are symbols of the Japanese pop culture. There are also other attractions like the Studio Ghibli anime center, as well as museums like the Tokyo National Museum, which houses 37% of the country's artwork national treasures. Speaking of museums, Japan has four major national museums: Tokyo National Museum , the country's largest museum; the National Museum of Western Art ; and the Tokyo National Museum of Modern Art, with its collections of Japanese modern art as well as over 40,000 Japanese and foreign films and the National Museum of Science.
Even if there is the language barrier you can go to different types of theaters in Tokyo: national and private theaters for traditional forms of Japanese drama (like noh and kabuki) as well as modern dramas. If you want to dance you can go to Western or Japanese pop and rock concerts in clubs or in large arenas like the Nippon Budokan.
In Tokyo occur many festivals like the Sanno at Hie Shrine, the Sanja at Asakusa Shrine, and the biennial Kanda Festivals. The last one includes a parade with decorated floats which is attended by thousands of people. Each year, on the last Saturday of July enormous fireworks display over the Sumida River attracts over a million viewers. The cherry blossoming in spring is considered an occasion for gathering in the Ueno Park, Inokashira Park, and the Shinjuku Gyoen National Gardens for picnics.
Other attractions in Tokyo are: the Jizo Hall of Shofuku-ji, a suburban temple, is a National treasure, the Imperial Palace , Maiji Shrine andSneso-ji, a popular temple and the Tsukiji Fish Market.
Tokyo cuisine is world recognized and appreciated. When Michelin released in 2007 their guide for fine dining in Tokyo, gathering 191 stars in total, it surpassed its nearest competitor, Paris.
Regarding popular media, Tokyo has the largest studios and broadcasters. The city is frequently the setting for movies, television shows, anime, web comics, comic books. Not only Japanese use Tokyo as a setting. Movies like " Kill Bill", "The Fast and the Furious" were filmed there.
Architecture in Tokyo is highly composed of sky scrapers. Very few old buildings survived the two catastrophic events that hit Tokyo. Also, Tokyo has many gardens and parks. Japanese gardens are very popular and an inspiration for other countries.
When in Tokyo, be sure you have a camera with you, or if you don`t have one, this is the perfect city from which you can buy one. It is world known that Japanese have one of the best technologies and not very high prices. Here you can find gadgets and devices you have never heard of, and also, dog robots. It`s no secret that Japan is acknowledged to be the leader in the field of robotics.
All in all, Tokyo is an extraordinary city that is worth being discovered: exquisite cuisine, spectacular architecture, beautiful and peaceful gardens, amazing technology and a fascinating culture.
Loading ...
