Japan
Lonely Planet - £19.00
The perfectly framed view is everything in Japan – be it of a snow-capped volcano, an alpine meadow sprinkled with wildflowers, or pine-tree clad islands fading to the horizon. The country is blessed with spectacular natural landscapes such as these, as well as artfully designed gardens. Once you've taken your photos, go experience Japan's great outdoors on a hike, bicycle ride or scenic cruise. In winter, take in magnificent vistas from the country's ski resorts.
('Beautiful Landscapes').
Reassuring with all-night halos of fluorescent light, convenience stores are ever-awake parents, nurturing solo-living students, the elderly and disaster victims.
('Konbini: A One Stop Surrogate Parent').
This Japan Lonely Planet Travel Guide essentially traverses all one needs to know with regards discovering this fascinating land of cultural difference and occasional breath-taking beauty.
I use the word 'occasional,' as having not long returned from the so-called Land of the Rising Sun, I found many urban areas such as Sapporo, Hiroshima, Beppu, Maizuru, Kanazawa and Akita, to be not that topographically different to that of their European counterparts. Admittedly and coincidentally strange as this may sound – and invariably was whilst in country – where I found Japan to drastically differ from the west, was within it's everyday mode of the most genteel behaviour.
To be sure, there's a certain politeness (across all ages might I add), which almost far exceeds everything else.
There really is a lot of bowing for instance.
It's not just an exaggerated myth.
As much may partially explain why Rob Goss writes: ''Japan can feel like a different world. In some senses, it is […]. Yes, there's a tendency to be reserved and polite in public, and there's a strong cultural emphasis on harmony, avoiding confrontation and being guarded with your opinions'' in the 'Meet The Japanese' section towards the end of the book. And he's not wrong. Likewise, the following: ''Culturally, it's the little things that add up, rather than any single, major change. The silence on the Metro and shinkansen now feels natural to me, as does sharing food at restaurants, and not thinking twice when I see elementary school kids navigating rush hour alone. All par for the course in Japan.''
It's just such notable writing on the everyday culture of this most fascinating of countries which account for these hefty 755 pages (not including Index and a Lonely Planet pull-out map of Tokyo), being so resolutely reliable.
Suffice to say, Japan is subdivided into various regional sections, naturally beginning with the capital, Tokyo, that is immediately followed by Mt Fuji & Around Tokyo, Central Honshu & the Japan Alps, Kyoto, Kansai, Hiroshima & Western Honshu, Northern Honshu, Sapporo & Hokkaido, Shikoku, Kyushu, and finally Okinawa & the Southwest Islands.
All of which include maps, descriptions and colour photographs; which, when aligned alongside Itineraries, The Food Scene, The Outdoors and a section entitled 'Get Prepared For Japan' which touches on manners ('Speak quietly and avoid mobile phone use in enclosed places.' 'Shoe etiquette,' 'No eating while walking' and 'Don't blow your nose in public') accounts for quite possibly the finest guide on Japan other than actually being there.
David Marx
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