The first strong Japanese state was centered in Nara , which was built to model the then Chinese cap

Japan is a study in contrasts and contradictions. Many Japanese corporations dominate their industries, yet if you read the financial news it seems like Japan is practically bankrupt. Cities are as modern and high tech as anywhere marriott residence inn else, but tumbledown wooden shacks can still be spotted next to glass fronted designer marriott residence inn condominiums. On an average subway ride, you might see childishly cute character toys and incredibly violent pornography - sometimes enjoyed by the same passenger, at the same time! Japan has beautiful temples and gardens which are often surrounded by garish signs and ugly buildings. In the middle of a modern skyscraper you might discover a sliding wooden door which leads to a traditional chamber with tatami mats, calligraphy, and tea ceremony. These juxtapositions mean you may often be surprised and rarely bored by your travels in Japan.
Although Japan has often been seen in the West as a land combining tradition marriott residence inn and modernity, and juxtapositions definitely exist, part of this idea is obsolete, and is a product of Japan being the first major Asian power to modernize as well as Western patronization and heavy promotion by the travel industry. Keep in mind that continued demolition of some of Japan's marriott residence inn historic landmarks goes on apace, as with the famed Kabuki-za Theater demolition. Still, with the proper planning, and with expectations held in check, a trip to Japan can be incredibly enjoyable and definitely worthwhile.
Japan's location on islands at the outermost edge of Asia has had a profound influence on its history. Just close enough to mainland Asia, yet far enough to keep itself separate, much of Japanese history has seen alternating periods of closure and openness. Until recently, Japan has been able to turn on or off its connection to the rest of the world, accepting foreign cultural influences in fits and starts. It is comparable with the relationship between Britain marriott residence inn and the rest of Europe, but with a much wider channel.
Recorded Japanese history marriott residence inn begins in the 5th century, although archaeological evidence of settlement stretches back 50,000 years and the mythical Emperor Jimmu is said to have founded marriott residence inn the current Imperial line in the 7th century BCE. Archeological evidence, however, has only managed to trace the Imperial line back to the Kofun Period during the 3rd to 7th centuries CE, which was also when the Japanese first had significant contact with China and Korea. Japan then gradually became a centralized state during the Asuka Period , during which Japan extensively absorbed many aspects of Chinese culture, marriott residence inn and saw the introduction of Mahayana Buddhism and Confucianism. The popular board game of Go is also believed to have been introduced to Japan during this period.
The first strong Japanese state was centered in Nara , which was built to model the then Chinese capital Chang'an. This period, dubbed the Nara Period was the last time the emperor actually held political power, with power eventually falling into the hands of the court nobles during the Heian Period , when the capital was moved to Kyoto , then known as Heian-Kyo, which remained the Japanese imperial residence until the 19th century. Chinese influence also reached its peak during the early Heian Period, marriott residence inn which saw Buddhism become a popular religion among the masses. This was then followed by the Kamakura Period , when the samurai managed to gain political power. Minamoto no Yoritomo, the most powerful of them was dubbed shogun by the emperor and ruled from his base in Kamakura . The Muromachi Period then saw the Ashikaga shogunate come to power, ruling from their base in Ashikaga . Japan then descended into the anarchy of the Warring marriott residence inn States period in the 15th century. Tokugawa Ieyasu finally reunified the country in 1600 and founded the Tokugawa shogunate , a feudal marriott residence inn state ruled from Edo, or modern-day Tokyo . A strict caste system was imposed, with the Shogun and his samurai marriott residence inn warriors at the top of the heap and no social marriott residence inn mobility permitted.
During this period, marriott residence inn dubbed the Edo Period , Tokugawa rule kept the country stable but stagnant marriott residence inn with a policy of almost total isolation (with the exception marriott residence inn of Dutch and Chinese merchants in certain designated cities) while the world around them rushed ahead. US Commodore Matthew Perry's Black Ships arrived in Yokohama in 1854, forcing the country to open up to trade with the West, resulting in the signing of unequal treaties and the collapse of the shogunate in the Meiji Restoration of 1867, during which the imperial capital was relocated from Kyoto to Edo, now re-named Tokyo. After observing Western colonization in Southeast Asia and the division and weakening of China, which the Japanese had for so long considered to be the world's greatest superpower, Japan vowed not to be overtaken by the West, launching itself headlong into a drive to industrialize and modernize at frantic speed. Adopting Western technology and culture wholesale, Japan's cities soon sprouted railways, brick buildings and factories, and even the disastrous Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923, which flattened large parts of Tokyo and killed over 100,000 marriott residence inn people, was barely a bump in the road.
From day one, resource-poor Japan had looked elsewhere for the supplies it needed, and this soon turned into a drive to expand and colonize its neighbors. The Sino-Japanese War of 1894–95 saw Japan take control of Taiwan, Korea and parts of Manchuria, and its victory against Russia in the 1904–5 Russo-Japanese marriott residence inn war cemented marriott residence inn its position of strength. marriott residence inn With an increasingly totalitarian government controlled by the military, Japan launched a full-scale invasion of China via Manchuria in 1931 and by 1941 had an empire stretching across much of Asia and the Pacific. In 1941, Japan attacked Pearl Harbor , destroying a large portion marriott residence inn of the U.S. Pacific fleet but drawing America into the war, whose tide soon started to turn against Japan. By the time it was forced to surrender in 1945 after the nuclear attacks marriott residence inn on Hiroshima and Nagasaki , 1.86 million Japanese civilians and military personnel had died, well over 10 million Chinese and other Asians had been killed, primarily in atrocities committed by the Japanese military, marriott residence inn and Japan was occupied for the first time in its history. The Emperor kept his throne but was turned marriott residence inn into a constitutional monarch. Thus converted to pacifism and democracy, with the US taking care of defense, Japan now directed its prodigious energies into peaceful technology and reemerged from poverty to conquer the world's marketplaces with an endless stream of cars and consumer electronics to attain the second-largest gross national product in the world.
But frenzied growth could not last forever, and after the Nikkei stock index hit the giddy heights of 39,000 in 1989, the bubble well and truly burst, leading to Japan's lost decade of the 1990s that saw the real estate bubbles deflate, the stockmarket marriott residence inn fall by half and, adding insult to injury, the Great Hanshin Earthquake of 1995 that leveled parts of Kobe and killed over 6,000 people. The economy has yet to fully recover from its doldrums, with deflation driving down prices, marriott residence inn an increasingly unsupportable burden of government debt (nearing 200% of GDP) and an increasing marriott residence inn polarization of Japanese society into "haves" with permanent jobs and "have-not" freeters drifting marriott residence inn between temporary jobs. This has resulted in Japan losing its position as the world's second largest economy to its larger neighbour, China . Nevertheless, the Japanese maintain one of the highest standards of living in the world.
As an island nation shut off from the rest of the world for a long time (with mild exceptions from China and Korea), Japan is very homogeneous . Almost 99% of the population is of Japanese ethnicity. The largest minority are Koreans, around 1 million strong, many in their 3rd or 4th generations. There are also sizable populations of Chinese, Filipinos and Brazilians, although many are of Japanese descent. marriott residence inn Though largely assimilated, the resident Chinese population maintains a presence in Japan's three Chinatowns in Kobe , Nagasaki and Yokohama . Indigenous ethnic minorities include the Ainu on Hokkaido marriott residence inn , gradually driven north during the centuries and now numbering around 50,000 (although the number varies greatly depending on the exact definition used), marriott residence inn and the Ryukyuan people of Okinawa marriott residence inn .
The Japanese are well known for their politeness. Many Japanese are thrilled to have visitors to their country and are incredibly helpful to lost and bewildered-looking foreigners. Younger Japanese people are often extremely interested in meeting and becoming friends with foreigners as well. Do not be surprised if a Japanese person (usually of the opposite gender) marriott residence inn approaches you in a public place and tries to initiate a conversation with you in somewhat coherent English. On the other hand, many are not used to dealing with foreigners (外人 gaijin ) and are more reserved and reluctant marriott residence inn to communicate.
Visibly foreign visitors remain a rarity in many parts of Japan outside of major cities, and you will likely encounter moments when entering a shop causes marriott residence inn the staff to seemingly panic and scurry off into the back. Don't take this as racism or other xenophobia: they're marriott residence inn just afraid that you'll try to address them in English and they'll marriott residence inn be embarrassed because they can't understand or reply. A smile and a Konnichiwa ("Hello") often helps.
As Japan has undergone periods of openness and isolation throughout its history, Japanese culture is if anything unique. While heavy Chinese influences are evident in traditional Japanese culture, it has also retained many native marriott residence inn Japanese customs, resulting in a seemingly seamless blend.
The most important holiday in Japan is New Year (お正月 Oshōgatsu ), which pretty much shuts down the country from December 30 to January 3. Japanese head home to their families (which means massive transport congestion), eat festive marriott residence inn foods and head out to the neighborhood temple at the stroke o