A short trip – but an exciting one. I am happy to share our experiences as we covered this incredible country in just over a week. Is it a blog or a travelogue – it is for you to decide.
There are few countries (small in area and population) in the world that have had as much global impact as Japan has. Over the last few decades it has entered our lives in many ways, Sony, Suzuki, Daikin, and Fuji films are some examples. Great Britain was a pioneer. Germany and South Korea are the newer examples.
Japan is all of 3.77 lac Sq KM with a population of 12.7 Cr – a country slightly larger and more populous than Maharashtra, spread over four large islands of Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu. With a latitude and longitude spread of 15 degrees (equivalent to Kochi to Ahmedabad in length and Ahmedabad to Guwahati in width), it is a country that offers a variety of weathers.
For a densely populated country that is a global leader in technology, it has a surprisingly high forest cover of 68% (India at 21% scores poorly).
Tokyo is both the official and commercial capital of Japan. With a population of 37 million (about 25% of Japan’s), Greater Tokyo is the most populous megapolis in the world.
Like many developed countries, it is very stingy about giving visas to Indians, we get a 15-day tourist Visa!
Being strict vegetarians, the bulk of our preparation went into planning our food menu and selecting Airbnb close to metro stations. We knew we could not survive on ordered food. The rest was on googling which places to visit – Chat GPT was helpful in making a plan too!
So, how was Japan? Let the story unfold.
