Japan, Land Of The Rising Sun, a fascinating country with a colourful culture and history.

Tokyo is the gigantic metropolis of an exotic world with its Imperial Palace which is protected by mighty walls and wide moats, vivid proof of the former supreme power of the former Tokugawa Shoguns.

Close by, in Shiba Park, are the Zojo Ji Family Temple and the remains of the Tokugawa Clan’s cemetery. To this day, the temple has remained a place of meditation and Buddhist faith. Adjacent is Tokyo Tower that is situated on the edge of the Roppongi district and is a replica of Paris’ Eiffel Tower.

South of Tokyo is the seaport of Kamakura, Japan’s ancient seat of government. Shogun Yoritomo of the Minamoto Clan, left the courtly life of Kyoto in 1192 and built numerous temples and shrines there. Founded in 1282, the Engaku Ji Monastery teaches the priesthood right up to the present day.

Kyoto is considered to be the cradle of Japanese culture an ancient Imperial city with twelve hundred years of history. Emperor Saga honoured the monk, Kukai, by giving him the eastern Toji Temple as the centre of Shingon Buddhism.

The Japanese city of Hiroshima was once the most powerful castle town of Mori Terumoto, and also the headquarters of the Imperial family. From 1591 it was the centre of power of Western Japan. On August 6, 1945, at 8:15 in the morning, the first American nuclear bomb in history was dropped over Hiroshima, an apocalyptic moment that brought indescribable suffering.

Japan is a country where extreme contrasts within a very small space create an extraordinary symbiosis of tradition and modernity, nature and artificiality. Today, this contrasting land of smiles has opened itself up to the world.