about Kobe Japan

Japan and visit to Kobe City

The Kobe briefs history
Origins: Meiji Era
Stone artifacts & tools found in western Kobe demonstrate that the area was populated at least from the Jōmon period. The natural geography of the area, particularly of Wada Cape in Hyōgo-ku, led to the development of a port, which would remain the economic center of the city. Some of the earliest written documents mentioning the region include the Nihon Shoki, which describes the founding of the Ikuta Shrine by Empress Jingū in 201 A.D.
During the Nara and Heian periods, the port was known by the name owada Anchorage and was one of the ports from which imperial embassies to China were dispatched. The city was briefly the capital of Japan in 1180 when Taira no Kiyomori moved his grandson Emperor Antoku to Fukuhara in present-day Hyogo-ku. The Emperor returned to Kyoto after about five months. Shortly thereafter in 1184, the Taira fortress in Hyōgo-ku and the nearby Ikuta Shrine became the sites of the Genpei War battle of Ichi-no-Tani between the Taira and Minamoto clans. The Minamoto prevailed, pushing the Taira further west.
As the port grew during the Kamakura period, it became an important hub for trade with China and other countries, and in the 13th century, the city came to be known by the name Hyōgo Port . During this time, Hyōgo Port along with northern Osaka composed the province of Settsu. Later, during the Edo period, the eastern parts of present-day Kobe came under the jurisdiction of the Amagasaki Domain and the western parts under that of the Akashi Domain, while the center was controlled directly by the Tokugawa shogunate. It was not until the abolition of the han system in 1871 and the establishment of the current prefecture system that the area became politically distinct.
Hyogo Port was one of the first ports to open for trade with Western countries following the Meiji Restoration and the end of the policy of seclusion in 1868. The region has since been identified with the West, and many foreign residences from the period remain in Kobe's Kitano area. Find hotel in Kobe Japan

Japan cities

In Japan has thousands of cities; these are nine of the most important to the traveller.
Tokyo city: the capital of Japan and main financial centre, modern and densely populated.

Osaka : large and dynamic city located in the Kansai region
Kanazawa : historic city on the west coast
Kyoto city:ancient capital of Japan, considered the cultural heart of the country, with many ancient Buddhist temples and gardens
Nagasaki : ancient port city in Kyushu,the second city to be destroyed by an atom bomb
Hiroshima : large port city, the first city to be destroyed by an atomic bomb
Nara : first capital of a united Japan, with many Buddhist shrines, and historical buildings
Sapporo : largest city in Hokkaido, famous for its snow festival
Sendai : largest city in the Tohoku region, known as the city of forests due to its tree lined avenues and wooded hills

in Japan

This country consists of four main islands and many smaller islands, notably Okinawa. Here they are from north to south, with Honshu, by far the largest and most populated island, divided into five: Hokkaido : northernmost island, and snowy frontier. Famous for its wide open spaces and cold winters.
Tohoku : north-east Honshu, for seafood, skiing and hot springs
Kanto : coastal plain of Honshu, includes the cities of Tokyo and Yokohama
Chubu : mountainous middle region of Honshu, dominated by the Japan Alps and Japan's fourth-largest city Nagoya.
Kansai : western region of Honshu, ancient capital of culture and commerce, including the cities of Osaka, Kyoto, Nara and Kobe.
Chugoku : south-westernmost Honshu, a rural region best known for the cities of Hiroshima and Shimonoseki.
Shikoku : smallest of the 4 main islands, a destination for Buddhist pilgrims, and Japan's best white-water rafting
Kyushu : southernmost of the 4 main islands, birthplace of Japanese civilization; largest cities Fukuoka and Kitakyushu
Okinawa: semi-tropical southern island chain reaching out toward Taiwan; formerly the independent Ryukyu Kingdom until it was annexed by Japan in 1879, its traditional customs and architecture are significantly different from the rest of Japan.

JAPAN

The English word Japan is an exonym not used in the Japanese language. The Japanese names for Japan are Nippon and Nihon. They are both written in Japanese using the kanji. The Japanese name Nippon is used for most official purposes, including on Japanese money, postage stamps, and for many international sporting events.
Japan ( Nihon or Nippo Nippon-koku) is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of China, Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea in the south. The characters that make up Japan's name mean "sun-origin", which is why Japan is sometimes identified as the "Land of the Rising Sun".
Japan comprises over 3,000 islands making it an archipelago. The largest islands are Honshu, Hokkaido, Kyūshu and Shikoku, together accounting for 97% of Japan's land area. Most of the islands are mountainous, many volcanic; for example, Japan’s highest peak, Mount Fuji, is a volcano. Japan has the world's tenth largest population, with about 128 million people. The Greater Tokyo Area, which includes the de facto capital city of Tokyo and several surrounding prefectures, is the largest metropolitan area in the world, with over 30 million residents.

Japanese island

This country of over three thousand islands extending along the Pacific coast of Asia. The main islands, running from north to south, are Hokkaidō, Honshu (the main island), Shikoku and Kyūshū. The Ryukyu Islands, including Okinawa, are a chain of islands south of Kyushū. Together they are often known as the Japanese Archipelago.
About 70% to 80% of the country is forested, mountainous, and unsuitable for agricultural, industrial, or residential use. This is because of the generally steep elevations, climate and risk of landslides caused by earthquakes, soft ground and heavy rain. This has resulted in an extremely high population density in the habitable zones that are mainly located in coastal areas. Japan is one of the most densely populated countries in the world.
Its location on the Pacific Ring of Fire, at the juncture of three tectonic plates, gives Japan frequent low-intensity tremors and occasional volcanic activity. Destructive earthquakes, often resulting in tsunamis, occur several times each century. Hot springs are numerous in Japan and have been developed as resorts.

Climate in Japan

The main rainy season begins in early May in Okinawa, and the stationary rain front responsible for this gradually works its way north until it dissipates in northern Japan before reaching Hokkaidō in late July. In most of Honshu, the rainy season begins before the middle of June and lasts about six weeks. In late summer and early autumn, typhoons often bring heavy rain.
Japan is home to nine forest ecoregions which reflect the climate and geography of the islands. They range from subtropical moist broadleaf forests in the Ryukyu & Bonin islands, to temperate broadleaf and mixed forests in the mild climate regions of the main islands, to temperate coniferous forests in the cold, winter portions of the northern islands.
The climate of Japan is predominantly temperate, but varies greatly from north to south. Japan's geographical features divide it into six principal climatic zones:
Hokkaido: The northernmost zone has a temperate climate with long, cold winters and cool summers. Precipitation is not heavy, but the islands usually develop deep snow banks in the winter.
Sea of Japan: On Honshū's west coast, the northwest wind in the wintertime brings heavy snowfall. In the summer, the region is cooler than the Pacific area, though it sometimes experiences extremely hot temperatures, because of the foehn wind phenomenon.
Central Highland: A typical inland climate, with large temperature differences between summer and winter, and between day and night. Precipitation is light.
Seto Inland Sea: The mountains of the Chūgoku and Shikoku regions shelter the region from the seasonal winds, bringing mild weather throughout the year.
Pacific Ocean: The east coast experiences cold winters with little snowfall and hot, humid summers because of the southeast seasonal wind.
Ryukyu Islands: Ryukyu Islands have a subtropical climate, with warm winters and hot summers. Precipitation is very heavy, especially during the rainy season. Typhoons are common.

Japan : economy

This Country economy is characterized by low overall taxation and overwhelmingly private sector economy compared to most Western countries, high economic freedom, close government-industry cooperation for economic growth, emphasis on science and technology, and strong work ethic.
Banking, insurance, real estate, retailing, transportation and telecommunications are all major industries. Japan has a large industrial capacity and is home to some of the largest, leading and most technologically advanced producers of motor vehicles, electronic equipment, machine tools, steel and nonferrous metals, ships, chemicals, textiles and processed foods. Construction has long been one of Japan's largest industries, with the help of multi-billion dollar government contracts in the civil sector. Distinguishing characteristics of the Japanese economy have included the cooperation of manufacturers, suppliers, distributors and banks in closely-knit groups called keiretsu and the guarantee of lifetime employment in big corporations.
Japan is also home to some of the largest financial services companies, business groups and bank such as Sony, Sumitomo, Mitsubishi and Toyota. It is also home to the world's largest bank by asset, Japan Post Bank and others such as Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group , Mizuho Financial Group and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group. The Tokyo Stock Exchange with a market capitalization of over 549.7 trillion Yen as of December 2006 stands as the second largest in the world.

Study In Japan

Education in Japan:

This Country is known for its well-maintained educational system and excellent achievement. In successive international tests of mathematics, Japanese children consistently rank at or near the top. The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) is responsible for educational administration.
Primary, secondary schools and universities were introduced into Japan in 1872 as a result of the Meiji Restoration.in Since 1947, compulsory education in Japan consists of elementary school and middle school, which lasts for nine years (6 to age 15). Almost all children continue their education at a three-year senior high school, and, according to the MEXT, about 75.9% of high school graduates attend a university, junior college, trade school, or other post-secondary institution in 2005. Japan's education is very competitive, especially for entrance to institutions of higher education.
Higher education in Japan (university & college)
As of 1991, more than 2.1 million students were enrolled in 507 universities. At the top of the higher education structure, these institutions provide four-year training leading to a bachelor's degree, and some offer six-year programs leading to a professional degree. There are two types of public four-year colleges: the ninety-six national universities (including the University of the Air) and the thirty-nine local public universities, founded by prefectures and municipalities. The 372 remaining four-year colleges in 1991 were private.

Japanese & culture

Japanese culture has evolved greatly over the years, from the country's original Jōmon culture to its contemporary culture, which combines influences from Asia, Europe and North America. Traditional Japanese arts include crafts : ikebana, origami, ukiyo-e, dolls, lacquerware, pottery. performances like : bunraku, dance, kabuki, noh, rakugo. traditions : games, tea ceremony, Budō, architecture, gardens, swords and cuisine. The fusion of traditional woodblock printing and Western art led to the creation of manga, a typically Japanese comic book format that is now popular within and outside Japan.
Manga-influenced animation for television and film is called anime. Japanese-made video game consoles have prospered since the 1980s.
Japanese music is eclectic, having borrowed instruments, scales and styles from neighboring cultures. Many instruments, such as the koto, were introduced in the ninth and tenth centuries. The accompanied recitative of the Noh drama dates from the fourteenth century and the popular folk music, with the guitar-like shamisen, from the sixteenth. Post-war Japan has been heavily influenced by American and European modern music, which has led to the evolution of popular band music called J-pop.

JAPAN : science & technology

Science & technology in Japan
This Country is one of the leading nations in the fields of scientific research, particularly technology, machinery and biomedical research. For instance some of Japan's more prominent technological contributions are found in the fields of electronics, automobiles, machinery, industrial robotics, optics, chemicals, semiconductors and metals. Japan leads the world in robotics production and use, possessing more than half of the world's industrial robots used for manufacturing. Japan is the world's largest producer of automobiles and home to six of the world's fifteen largest automobile manufacturers and seven of the world's twenty largest semiconductor sales leaders as of today.
Japan has plans in space exploration, including building a moonbase by 2030. The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) conducts space and planetary research, aviation research, and development of rockets and satellites. It is a participant in the International Space Station and the Japanese Experiment Module (Kibo) is slated to be added to the International Space Station during Space Shuttle assembly flights in 2008.

JAPAN

"JAPAN" The first signs of occupation on the Japanese Archipelago appeared with a Paleolithic culture around 30,000 BC, followed from around 14,000 BC by the Jōmon period, a Mesolithic to Neolithic semi-sedentary hunter-gatherer culture of pit dwelling and a rudimentary form of agriculture. Decorated clay vessels from this period, often with plaited patterns, are some of the oldest surviving examples of pottery in the world.The Yayoi period, starting around the third century BC, introduced new practices, such as wet-rice farming, iron and bronze-making and a new style of pottery, brought by migrants from China or Korea. With the development of Yayoi culture, a predominantly agricultural society emerged in Japan.

The Japanese first appear in written history in China’s Book of Han. According to the Chinese Records of Three Kingdoms, the most powerful kingdom on the archipelago during the third century was called Yamataikoku.