GO TO JAPAN, EAT RAW FISH, SEE THE EIFEL TOWER ?

TOKYO, JAPAN

The Place To Go

Welcome

to…

JAPAN

LANDMARKS The Tsukiji Fish Market: is where many

restaurant and sushi chefs come to bid on the choicest cuts.

The Meiji Jingu and Yasukuni: shrines play an important role in Japan's political and military history as well as the Shinto religion.

The Tokyo Tower: Tokyo Tower is a communications and observation tower located in Shiba Park, Minato, Tokyo, Japan. At 333 meters, it is the second-tallest artificial structure in Japan.

FAMOUS PEOPLE Jinmu-tennō: Japan’s first emperor. Yoko Ono: Japanese artist and musician who

became a peace activist, and also helped with AIDS awareness, but most famously known as the wife of John Lennon.

ICHIRO SUZUKI: Famous Baseball Player.

EVENTS Sapporo Snow Festival: about two million

people visited Sapporo to see the hundreds of snow statues and ice sculptures at the Odori Park and Susukino sites.

The Nebuta Festival: takes place from August 2 to 7 in the city of Aomori, which is located at the northern tip of Japan's main island, Honshu.

The Sanno Festival: organized by Hie Jinja in Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo. The shrine has a long history, dating back to 1478, when it was built to ensure good fortune during the construction of the castle in Edo (now Tokyo).

LANGUAGE ORIGIN: Theories have sprung up to explain the

origin of the Japanese language until they have become as varied as the seasons. In fact, Roy Miller, a profuse writer and well-respected authority on this language, says with respect to unraveling its ancestry, "Only one [predominant] language of one major nation remains today without clarification of its origins — Japanese”

TODAY: Japanese is a Ural-Altaic language that is currently spoken by about 130 million people worldwide. Despite its modern prominence as the 9th most popularly spoken language in the world

GEEK CULTURE

Anime: The history of anime begins at the start of the 20th century, when Japanese filmmakers experimented with the animation techniques that were being explored in the West. Though filmmakers in Japan experimented with animation earlier, the first widely popular anime series was samu Tezuka's Astro Boy(1963)During the 1970s.

FOOD Do you like rice porridge? It's called okayu or

kayu in Japan and is known as an easily digestible dish.

You’ll Never Guess: The Japanese people consider fish sperm a delicacy in food

Lots of vegetables: are deep-fried and marinated in dashi based soup. This type of dish is often called age-bitashi.

Curry: Pan-fried vegetables are added in basic curry made with pre-packaged Japanese curry roux.

SPORTS Sumo: is a Japanese style of wrestling and Japan's

national sport. It originated in ancient times as a performance to entertain the Shinto gods. Many rituals with religious background are still followed today.

Shogi: is "Japanese chess". It was originally introduced to Japan from China in the 8th century.

Hanetsuki: is a traditional Japanese New Year's game, played with a wooden paddle called hagoita and a shuttle called hane. The game resembles badminton, played without a net. While the game's popularity has declined in recent times, beautifully ornamented hagoita are still a popular collection item.

NINJA BREAK!

COMIC BOOKS

Manga: The tradition of narrative art or telling stories with a series of sequential images has been a part of Japanese culture long before Superman ever put on a cape. The earliest examples of pre-manga artwork that influenced the development of modern Japanese comics are commonly attributed to Toba Sojo, an 11th-century painter-priest with a whimsical sense of humor.

TRANSPORTATION

Train: Japan has an efficient public transportation network, especially within metropolitan areas and between the large cities. Japanese public transportation is characterized by its punctuality, its superb service, and the large crowds of people using it.

ETIQUITE House: When entering a Japanese house,

outdoor shoes are always replaced by slippers at the doorway. Slippers are provided by the host.

Table: In Japan, you say "itadakimasu" ("I gratefully receive") before eating, and "gochisosama (deshita)" ("Thank you for the meal") after finishing the meal.