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• Japan
Ancient … and modern
One of the world’s wealthiest nations offers everything from old temples to the latest in high technology
Nara was first designated as a capital of Japan in the year 710. The area’s tourist attractions include the ancient city’s ruins, six temples and eight primeval forests.
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Sightseers are advised to start with the central monument, the ruins of a royal palace called the Heijokyo-ato. The palace was only in use as a royal residence and government offices for some 84 years before the imperial capital was switched to Heiankyo, present-day Kyoto. The site then became farmland but shortly after was developed as an area of influential temples and shrines.
The area became known as “a capital of temples and shrines” and its influential places of worship include Kofukuji and Todaiji. The latter is particularly noteworthy example of a temple of the era and was built by Emperor Shomu (reigned 724-749) in order to protect the country. Todaiji was built in order to protect the country.
The site of the palace itself was rediscovered in 1889 and some reconstruction has been going on since. The “Sujakumon Gate” was completed in 1998, along with gardens that preserve the spacious heath. Restoration and preservation activities are plentiful.
The nearby Kasugayama Primeval Forest has been registered as a world heritage site. Shinjuku surrounds the heart of the city government district of Tokyo and is the nexus of nine train and subway lines. The district’s busy station is used by over 500,000 people a day.
Exits at three points of the compass lead the sightseer to markedly different destinations. The West Exit area is – in Japanese English – an ‘office town’ of many varied and fanciful skyscrapers. The Tokyo Metropolitan Government Office lies at the centre of the area.
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The South Exit has the area of Kabuki-cho, “a town that never sleeps” at its centre and is a good spot for entertainment and shopping. A new comer, the South Exit leads to complex establishments for shopping and amusement. Shopping is also a feature of sights emanating from the East Exit, with its department stores and other large shops. Seibu Shinjuku, as the name implies, is in the area, as are several post offices for the eager philatelist.
The nationally noted landscaped Shinjuku-gyoen garden park is also accessible from the East Exit. The park features areas styled in French, English and Japanese styles and will be of particular interest to ornithologists.
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