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For a long time Japan has been out of limits for visitors from the rest of the world, or at least it was rather complicated to break through its shield of estrangement, which made its culture, traditions and, of course, its food highly distinctive and peculiar like nowhere else. That?s why nowadays Japan occupies a top position in the list of the countries which attract the most quantities of tourists (gaijins in Japanese) every year.

So here are some interesting facts and useful tips for those planning to take a trip to Japan.

Japan is situated in the Eastern Asia. It occupies a number of medium and small size islands: Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku, Kyushu, and a great quantity of smaller islands with the total quantity of about 4,000 islands.

Japan is a relatively small country with the total area of approximately 377,8 thousand square kilometers. The capital of Japan, Tokyo, accomodates over 10 million tourists yearly, while the population of the city reaches 12 million people, which makes it one of the world?s most inhabited cities.

What should you know when visiting Japan for the first time ever? First of all, there should be said some words about the climate of Japan. The climate of the country is predominantly subtropical monsoon, but it varies considerably from north to south. There can be distinguished 4 climatic zones in Japan, namely:

1. The zone of temperate oceanic climate with cold and long winters, cool summers and low quantity of precipitations is typical for the northernmost island of Japan, Hokkaido.
2. The west coast of Honshu island is characterized by the zone of oceanic climate with relatively warm summer; sometimes in summer there can be observed the so-called foehn ? a kind of wind which brings dramatic temperature rising;
3. The zone of humid subtropical climatic zone is stretched from the southern part of Honshu to the northern part of the Ryukyu archipelago, embracing Shikoku;
4. The tropical climatic zone is typical for the southernmost part of the Ryukyu archipelago and the island of Okinawa.

Speaking about the biggest cities of Japan there should be mentioned Yokohama (with the population 3,426 million), Osaka (2,598 million), Nagoya (2,171 million), Sapporo (1,822 million), Kobe (1,493 million), Kyoto (1,474 million), Kawasaki (1,327 million), Fukuoka (1,290 million), Hiroshima (1,159 million), Sendai (1,008 million), Chiba (924,5 thousand), Sakai Osaka (835,5 thousand), Okayama (696 thousand).

Japan is a constitutional monarchy. The unit of Japanese currency is yen. There are no customs restrictions for bringing currency in the country ? you can carry with you as much money as you like (or as you have). But if you carry a sum exceeding 1 million yen you must complete a customs declaration. Authorized money exchange counters function in airports, banks and shopping centers during normal office hours.

There is only one official language in Japan, this being, of course, Japanese. But nevertheless the English language is also widely used as a result of Japan?s political pro-western orientation. The study of English makes up a part of compulsory education in Japan.

You can stay either in a European hotel or in a ryokan ? traditional Japanese inn where you will have the chance to feel the very soul of Japanese culture.

Either if you are on business trip to Japan or if you are having holidays in there, there are some places you need to see before you leave this ancient country.

Over the years Japanese culture has evolved dramatically. Nowadays there is hardly a person outside Japan who doesn?t know the meaning of the words ikebana, origami, kabuki, tea ceremony, Japanese garden and many other exciting phenomena pertaining to Japanese life style. However, there are too many other things to discover about this marvelous and mysterious country, and much more to see than can be seen during a singular trip, so you will have to choose which type of activity you are going to pursue while visiting Japan for the first time.
If you prefer to browse through innumerable city sites, you may pay a visit to Kyoto National museum, Botanic Garden of Kyoto, dozens of parks, ancient castles and strongholds. In Tokyo tourists may enjoy walking down the main city street ? Ginja, which looks like an enormous beautifully decorated showcase, or to go on tour around Japanese Disneyland or Aqua park.  Japanese holds a lot of surprises for those seeking harmony in interaction with nature: there is a considerable number of national parks and open air museums in Japan, like Shirakami-sanchi, the primeval beech forest, Shiretoko Nature Center, Historic Villages of Shirakawa-go and Gokayama. And, of course, there is also one of world?s most famous mountains, Japan?s highest peak, Mount Fuji, which is a volcano.

In a world, there is much more to Japan than words can tell, and it?s better to see it with your own eyes.