The huge metropolis of Tokyo is one of the most modern and high-tech cities in the world. Here a huge number of people live, and the population density literally rolls over, which provoked an explosive rise in real estate prices. Nevertheless, the Japanese capital is firmly held in the top of the most visited cities in the world. And no wonder – where else can you feel the samurai spirit of the Land of the Rising Sun, if not in her heart?
The ancestors of the modern Japanese inhabited these lands in the era of stone axes. Previously, this city was a military fortress and was called “Edo”. Tokyo became the capital of Japan only in 1868. Prior to this, for 1075 years, the capital was the city of Kyoto. In 1923, a monstrous earthquake destroyed almost half of Tokyo and caused the death of more than 90 thousand people. The cost per square meter of real estate in the business center of the city here comes to 2 million dollars. Because of the high property prices in Tokyo, capsular micro-apartments have become widespread. Such a home is comparable in size to a kitchen in a typical Russian apartment. In some places here are not allowed foreigners. Directly on the door can hang a sign, translated as “foreigners are not served”.
Despite the relative popularity of tattoos among Japanese youth, a person with a tattoo on open areas of the body is not likely to be allowed into any decent restaurant. In Japan, tattoos are strongly associated with the yakuza and the criminal world (also, check Interesting facts about tattoos). In order to get rid of traffic jams in Tokyo, built a huge number of high-speed highways, but travel on them is paid. The cost of parking here is fabulously high. For example, a parking for a couple of hours somewhere in the center of Tokyo will cost about two thousand rubles. Fruits and vegetables here are much more expensive than in any city in Russia. The average price of an apple is about 100 rubles. The most popular area among Tokyo youth seeking entertainment is Harajuku. This is where you can meet the owners of the strangest dresses and hairstyles. In Tokyo, there is a restaurant “Aragava”, from year to year occupying one of the first places in the list of the most expensive restaurants in the world. The population of Tokyo is approximately equal in population to Moscow.
In honor of this city, an asteroid was discovered, discovered in 1900 by the Tokyo astronomer. The zoo in Tokyo annually closes for two months so that its inhabitants can take a break from visitors. Here are common “cat cafes” – places where you can play with these fluffy creatures. They became popular, as most Japanese love cats, but in most households the rules prohibit keeping pets (the facts about cats). The air temperature in Tokyo is usually 9-10 degrees higher than the temperature outside the city. The reason for this is a huge amount of infrastructure radiating into space, plus 13 million inhabitants, whose bodies also heat the air around.
About 150 earthquakes shake Tokyo every year, but most of them are so weak that people don’t even notice them. A similar situation is observed, by the way, in Santiago, the capital of Chile (facts about Chile). The capital occupies only 0.6% of the area of Japan, but it provides it with a third of all GDP. The GDP of the city of Tokyo alone is higher than the GDP of all of Australia. In the suburbs of the Japanese capital, there are twice as many people as in the city itself. There are more than 35 million people living in and around the city. This is about 60 times more than the population of Montenegro.
Based on the area of the city and the population, there are about 4 square meters per inhabitant here. Vending machines are ubiquitous in Tokyo and sell everything, from chocolates and hamburgers to used women’s underwear. Famous for the whole world thanks to his devotion, dog Hachiko waited until his death for his master right here at the Tokyo station Shibuya.
