Honshu Tour: Big Cities
Are there not enough capitals in Japan? And you can’t count them!
The largest and most important cities in Japan are located on the island of Honshu. Think about cities like Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto, Nara and Hiroshima. All of these cities are actually incredibly interesting and fun to visit. Many travelers choose to travel around Honshu and visit all these cities.
Tokyo
Mayan sculpture
Everyone knows this city. Tokyo is the capital of Japan and, with its 38 million inhabitants (including surrounding cities), one of the most populous metropolitan areas on earth. This metropolis never sleeps; life is always in full swing in the city. You can do whatever you want here. You can explore the culture, eat delicious and weird food, and shop. Tokyo is also one of the most modern cities on earth. The city is designed and built in a typical Japanese style. There are many tall buildings with bright illuminated signs and many narrow streets. Tokyo continues to evolve and change and will therefore always surprise. In addition to being modern, Tokyo fortunately also has its fair share of authentic historical buildings.
Osaka
Top 5 Best Osaka City Attractions
Osaka is a large city with 2.7 million inhabitants. Osaka is certainly not as big as the Tokyo metropolis, but that doesn't mean there isn't enough to do here! Osaka is a very beautiful and cheerful city. The city is the birthplace of Japanese culture and society, and is now also very important from an economic and industrial point of view. Just like Tokyo and other major cities on Honshu, this city has a center with skyscrapers and many shops with colorful advertisements. Thanks to its central location, Osaka, like Kyoto, is full of wonderful attractions.
Kyoto
Kyoto is a city of 1.5 million people and more than 1,000 temples and Shinto shrines. The city is relatively close to the aforementioned Osaka and, thanks to its many historical buildings and temples, is a popular destination for many travelers. The main attractions rank high on lists of beauty spots in Japan.
The surrounding mountains are simply beautiful and therefore attract many people. The Japanese call Kyoto the cultural capital of Japan. A nice fact is that Kyoto has been the capital of the country longer than Tokyo, 1000 years, while Tokyo is only 100.
Nara
It’s difficult to call Nara an important or large city. The city has “only” 400,000 inhabitants. Compared to the population of cities like Osaka or the Tokyo metropolitan area, this is not very large. But make no mistake, Nara is a very interesting and important city for Japan. Nara is known as the "city of scholars and wisdom." There are no less than six universities in the city. This is also the reason why you will find many international students in Nara. You will find many Buddhist temples and beautiful parks here. It's worth it!
Hiroshima
Hiroshima Monument
You've probably also heard about Hiroshima. This is the city where the damage caused by the Second World War is best visible. The city was attacked by an atomic bomb at the end of the war. The entire city, including 80,000 inhabitants, was completely destroyed. Today you can find many monuments and museums about the war here. Hiroshima also has a lot to offer in other areas such as fun and culture.
Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Is President Harry Truman a "killer"? 16+
Nature of Honshu
Honshu, as we have already said, is a very large island. The length of the island is at least 1200 kilometers, and the width is from 50 to 230 kilometers. Because Honshu is so elongated, the nature and climate are very diverse. For example, in the north of the island it is very cold and frosty in winter. Southern Honshu, on the other hand, has a subtropical climate. The temperature here is pleasant all year round. Therefore, you can ski very well in Nagano or enjoy the sun around Hiroshima.
Japanese Alps
This beautiful railway bridge is built over a mountain reservoir in the Southern Japanese Alps, in Shizuoka Prefecture.
On the island of Honshu you will find the Japanese Alps. As the name suggests, these are, like the European Alps, high mountains. This chain divides the island into two parts. In summer you can go hiking here. In winter, you can enjoy winter sports such as skiing, snowboarding and ice climbing. The Japanese Alps are not the only mountains on Honshu. You can find mountains and hills everywhere on the island. Take for example the tallest mountain in Japan, Mount Fuji. It is 3800 meters high and in summer it is very easy to climb on a good trail.
Beaches and lakes
Japanese Koi.
Did you know that you can snorkel and scuba dive in Honshu in many places? You will find beautiful beaches all over the island thanks to the gigantic coastline. There are lakes in the interior of the island (Lake Biwa) where you can also swim. You can walk very well along the rugged coastline of Honshu, and there are various routes for pilgrims and tourists.
Caves and waterfalls on Honshu
There are many waterfalls in Honshu. You can walk there on your own, or book a tour to one of these waterfalls or caves. Be aware that these tours are crowded as they are also very popular with many Japanese people.
Notes[ | ]
- E. M. Pospelov.
Geographical names of the world: Toponymic dictionary / R. A. Ageeva. - M.: Russian dictionaries, 1998. - P. 450. - 372 p. — 3000 copies. — ISBN 5-89216-029-7. - Ageenko, 2010.
- A more official version (Superanskaya A.V. Dictionary of Geographical Names. M., 2013).
- M. Studiner, Dictionary of exemplary Russian accent. Iris-Press, 2009
- The meaning of the word "Hondo" in the Great Soviet Encyclopedia
- Japan State Geographical Office （国土地理院） (undefined)
(unavailable link). Access date: March 15, 2011. Archived June 15, 2012. - Honda Katsuichi (2000). Harukor: an Ainu woman's tale
. University of California Press. p. 7.
History of Honshu
The history of this island is actually the complete history of Japan. It is the birthplace of the country, and almost every major and important event in Japanese history took place on this island. From conflicting warlords, the Meiji Restoration, to the events of World War II, it all started on this island. All these events left their mark on this part of Japan.
Literature[ | ]
- 『角川日本地名大辞典』全50巻、東京：角川書店、1987-1990 (“Large Dictionary of Place Names of Japan, Kadokawa Publishing House.” In 50 volumes, Tokyo: Kadokawa Shoten, 1987-1990)
- Ageenko F. L.
Dictionary of proper names of the Russian language. - M.: Peace and Education, 2010.
| Dictionaries and encyclopedias |
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| In bibliographic catalogs |
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The Second World War
Hiroshima
An event from which many traces can still be seen on Honshu is the Second World War. Even though there was never any fighting between Americans and Japanese on the Japanese "mainland", the war also caused great damage here. This was mainly due to the numerous barbaric bombings of the Americans. At the end of the war, major cities such as Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto and Nara were carpet bombed daily by US Navy and Air Force heavy bombers. According to various estimates, as a result of the Allied raids (not counting Hiroshima and Nagasaki), up to 900,000 civilians were killed, more than 1.3 million were injured, 67 cities were damaged and about 5 million Japanese were left homeless.
Hiroshima and Nagasaki. CRIME AGAINST HUMANITY. 16+
The city of Hiroshima was one of two Japanese cities that were attacked by the atomic bomb. The cities of Nagasaki and Hiroshima were chosen by the Americans to be destroyed by atomic bombs because other larger cities were completely destroyed and reduced to ruins by conventional bombs. There was nothing and no one to bomb in them. Today you can still see traces of these terrible events. Many materials, photographs, other images and memories from this period have been preserved and exhibited in various museums throughout Honshu.
Southern Islands
The Southern Islands of Japan usually include the Ryukyu Islands, located to the southwest of the main part of the country, the Bonin Islands, located in the Pacific Ocean, at a distance of 1000 km from Tokyo, and the most remote island of Minamitori.
Bonin Islands
is a group of 41 islands located between the Mariana Islands and Japan south of Tokyo. The total area does not exceed 104 square kilometers, the total population is about 2,500 people. There is a Japanese naval base on the southern island of Yojima.
Ryukyu Islands
is a group of 98 islands stretching 1,200 kilometers in the East China Sea from Kyushu to Taiwan and having a total area of 4,700 square meters. km. Currently, only 47 of them have a permanent population. The total number of inhabitants is 1.6 million people, 90% of whom live on the largest island - Okinawa. The most developed sectors of the economy are agriculture, fishing and tourism.
Minamitori
- the easternmost island of all that belonged to Japan. Minamitori has an area of 1.2 square kilometers and has no permanent population. Despite this, the island is of great strategic importance to the country, as it allows Japan to claim 428,875 km² in the surrounding waters.
Housing
Ryokan, traditional Japanese inn
The island of Honshu has many towns and villages with a variety of accommodation options. Do you want to spend a few days in the metropolis of Tokyo or another big city? Then it is better to book a hotel or hostel. If you go inland, there are other accommodation options such as traditional ryokans. No matter where you plan to spend the night, it's worth booking in advance. Then you avoid high prices and the fact that everything is already full.
Regions and prefectures[ | ]
The island is conventionally divided into five regions: Chugoku (western), Kansai (southern, east of Chugoku), Chubu (central), Kanto (eastern) and Tohoku (northern). The regions are divided into 34 prefectures, including Tokyo. In addition to the territory of Honshu, the prefectures include some small islands, including Ogasawara, Sado, Izu-Oshima, and Awaji.
List of regions and prefectures
- Kansai
- prefectures Mie, Shiga, Kyoto, Osaka, Hyogo, Nara, Wakayama. - Kanto
- Ibaraki, Tochigi, Gunma, Saitama, Chiba, Tokyo, Kanagawa prefectures. - Tohoku
- Aomori, Iwate, Miyagi, Akita, Yamagata, Fukushima prefectures. - Chubu
- Niigata, Toyama, Ishikawa, Fukui, Yamanashi, Nagano, Gifu, Shizuoka, Aichi prefectures. - Chugoku
- Tottori, Shimane, Okayama, Hiroshima, Yamaguchi prefectures.
Traveling around Honshu
High-speed train.
Japan. There are several major airports scattered throughout Honshu. In addition, you can also take the famous Shinkansen bullet train for your journey. If you want to explore Honshu's nature and smaller towns, it is possible to rent a car or book an organized trip.
Facts about Honshu
- Honshu - Japan's largest island
- More than 75% of the Japanese population lives on this island
- Almost every important event in Japanese history took place in Honshu
- You will find different climate conditions on the island.
Category: The most beautiful Japanese cities
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