| Local name: Nihon Koku |
| Surface : 377,864
sq km (145,894 sq miles) - Japan is situated in
northeastern Asia between the North Pacific and the Sea of Japan.
Japan consists of four major islands, surrounded by more than 4,000
smaller islands. |
| Population :
127,130,000 inhabitants |
| Electricity: The
voltage used throughout Japan is uniformly 100 volts, A.C. There are
two kinds of frequencies in use; 50 Hertz in eastern Japan and 60
Hertz in western Japan (including Nagoya, Kyoto and Osaka). |
| Climate: Except
for the Hokkaido area and the subtropical Okinawa region, the weather
is mostly temperate, with four seasons. Winters are cool and sunny in
the south, cold and sunny around Tokyo (which occasionally has snow),
and very cold around Hokkaido, which is covered in snow for up to 4
months a year. Summer, between June and September, ranges from warm to
very hot, while spring and autumn are generally mild throughout the
country. Rain falls throughout the year but June and early July is the
main rainy season. Hokkaido, however, is much drier than the Tokyo
area. Rainfall is intermittent with sunshine. Typhoons are only likely
to occur in September or October but rarely last more than a day. |
| PASSPORTS:
Passport valid for the duration of intended
stay in Japan required by all. VISAS:
Required by all except the following: nationals
of Austria, Germany, Ireland, Liechtenstein, Mexico, Switzerland and
the UK for a stay of up to 6 months; nationals of all other EU
countries not mentioned above for a stay of up to 3 months;
nationals of Andorra, Argentina, Australia, Bahamas, Barbados, Canada,
Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic,
Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Estonia, Former Yugoslav Republic of
Macedonia, Guatemala, Honduras, Hungary, Iceland, Israel, Latvia,
Lesotho, Lithuania, Malta, Mauritius, Monaco, Peru, Poland, San
Marino, Singapore, Slovenia, Surinam, Tunisia, Turkey, Uruguay and the
USA for a stay of up to 3 months; nationals of Andorra, Australia,
Barbados, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Monaco,
New Zealand, Peru, Poland and the USA for a stay of up to 90 days;
nationals of Brunei for a touristic stay of up to 14 days. |
| Capital : Tokyo
- The population of the Tokyo Metropolitan Area including the city,
some of its suburbs and the surrounding area is approximately 12
million |
| System : constitutional monarchy
- The Japanese parliament is the bicameral
Kokkai (or Diet). The upper house (Sangi-in) has 252 members directly
elected from constituencies for 6-year terms (half of which are
renewed every 3 years). The lower house (Shugi-in) has 500 members
elected for 4-year terms partly by single-seat constituencies, partly
by proportional representation. The Diet approves the appointment of a
prime minister who holds executive power with the assistance of a
cabinet of ministers. The appointment of the prime minister is
formally entrusted to the Emperor who is head of State but has
negligible constitutional powers. |
| Languages : Japanese |
| Religions : Shintoism
and Buddhism (most Japanese follow both religions) with a Christian
minority. |
| Money : The unit of Japanese
currency is yen. Coins are available in denominations of 1, 5, 10, 50,
100 and 500 yen and bank notes in denominations of 1,000, 2,000, 5,000
and 10,000 yen. |
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