As countries strive for closer connection, more and more people are also seeing the world, going beyond their own borders to experience life in yet another place, another dimension. In a world still reeling from the effects of terrorism, the war in Iraq and a global economic recession, people continue to travel and go places.
The World Tourism Organization (WTO) reports that in 2002, there were 455.9 million tourist arrivals globally, 60.2 million of whom were from the Asia-Pacific.
"To have imagination," wrote American journalist Anatole Broyard, "is inevitably to be dissatisfied with where you live. In our wanderlust, we are lovers looking for consummation."
Travel is obviously the next wave in global trade. And Japan, one of the strongest economies in the world, is taking notice. When it launched the "Visit Japan Campaign" this year, its objective was simple: to correct the imbalance between inbound and outbound tourism in the country.
The Japanese people are incidentally one the world’s most well-traveled people. According to the Japan Tourism Authority (JTA), in 2002, there were almost 17 million Japanese tourists who went abroad but only five million foreign tourists entered the country. Thus, Japan is ranked the 35th favorite tourist destination in the world, but Japanese tourists are ranked 10th in the world and the first in Asian countries.
And it has good reason to be concerned. Japan’s 5.24 million foreign visitors in 2002 brought in approximately $3.5 billion in tourism revenues. But its 16.52 million outbound travelers spent $26.4 billion outside the country.
"Many projects will be undertaken to make Japan a tourist country," Tsuneaki Nagasato, JTA executive director, said in a briefing for Asian media people during a recent press tour. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs are spearheading the campaign.
Japan is an interesting case study. Traditionally, it has focused on its industries – cars, electronic devices and computers are its main exports – to achieve phenomenal economic growth in the last few decades. This has enabled the country to attain one of the highest per capita GNPs in the world, and has afforded its people one of the most prosperous lifestyles.
However, in the new global economic order, its vision for tourism is even bigger: 10 million tourists by 2010 or an approximate income of 20 trillion to 21 trillion yen ($183 billion) a year, which, according to Nagasato, is equivalent to the income contributed by the automotive industry to the Japanese economy.
In striving to increase the number of foreign travelers to Japan, the aim is also "the revitalization of the regional communities" as stated in Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi’s policy address on Feb. 4, 2002.
However, more than the huge revenue tourism is expected to bring in to the country, Nagasato explained that opening Japan to the world is also a way of promoting peace and bridging the cultural divide among countries.
The "Visit Japan Campaign" was launched this year with a two-billion yen (approximately $17-million) budget for promotional activities and developing tourism sites in the country.
In crafting the strategic development agenda on tourism, Shiro Suzuki, deputy director of the International Tourism Promotion Division, cited Japan’s Oriental atmosphere, its high-tech products and lifestyle and the traditional Japanese culture as major draws.
Japan is already famous for Disneyland and the DisneySea here in Tokyo, which, incidentally, are celebrating their 20th year this year. A visit to this ultimate fantasyland "where magic lives" and "where childhood is forever" is always tops on the wish list of every child and not surprisingly, even the not-so-young.
However, there is actually more to Japan than Mickey Mouse’s fantastic home in Asia. For more serious tourists, travel to Japan can be one journey of discovery where history, culture and modernity intertwine.
One of the most popular destinations in Tokyo is the Imperial Palace, home of the oldest surviving monarchy. The Imperial Palace sits on a vast estate where the Edo Castle stood during the era of the Tokugawa Shogunate. While tourists cannot enter the Palace itself, a huge area is reserved for people to take in the breathtaking view of the mysterious Palace beyond the towering historic stonewalls and moats.
It is said that the Japanese people have a deep respect for the Royal Family even in this era when Japan is already ruled by a parliament and the Imperial Family a mere symbolic representation of the government.
A trip to the Imperial Palace is a fitting reminder that beneath Tokyo’s cityscape lies a very deep historical heritage.
If culture is your cup of tea, a visit to the 1,400-year-old Asakusa district, Japan’s old downtown, is a must-see after the Imperial Palace. The area surrounding the Sensoji Temple is a bustling row of stores that sell traditional Japanese crafts – dolls, fans, chopsticks, clothes, decorative items, tatami mats, toys and many other things. Don’t just pose for souvenir photos or buy a few keychains, take notice of the stark contrast between this section of the city and Tokyo’s urban jungle. Just on the other side of the road, high-rise buildings line the Tokyo skyline in full grandeur.
While it is no longer possible to see traditional Japanese architecture in central Tokyo, Asakusa provides the closest feel of the old Japan. It may be the last enclave of that homey Japanese community before the advent of the urban sprawl.
In the age of megacities – from Seoul to Singapore to Shanghai – there is always something very awe-inspiring about visiting old downtowns. It reminds one that no matter how uniform modern Asian cities may look and feel, there is always something that makes each one unique and distinct.
The charm of Tokyo lies in the pulsating and often intermingling rhythms of its centuries-old culture, the vibrance of its home-grown technologies and industries, and its society’s first-world affluence.
Since after the war, Japan has been known the world over for its electronics industry.
Akihabara, the world’s most popular electronics district in Tokyo, was originally built as a row of stores selling electronic products and home appliances, Japan’s trademark in the world market back in the 1950s when the world was going gaga over transistor radios and black-and-white television.
This small strip on Chuo Avenue, west of the Akihabara station, is a virtual destination for many visitors to Japan, where they can find the best deals in town.
But this electronic mecca has undergone very interesting transitions in the last 50 years, which is reflective of the changing nature of Japanese industries.
As the world moved toward the information age, this electrical equipment town has also slowly shifted from selling electrical devices to selling computers and computer-related gadgets, including digital cameras, mobile phones, printers, software and other digital devices.
Recently, another industry has also arrived in Akihabara to create its own niche in this world-famous shopping district. From electrical town to computer town, it is now also fast becoming an animation town. With the popularity of Japanese anime the world over, animation products – PC and Playstation games involving anime characters and other recreational goods – are fast taking up space in this booming technology town.
Japanese anime debuted in the ’60s with Tezuka Osamu’s Astroboy and Kimba, the White Lion. But it grabbed international attention in the succeeding years, particularly on TV with the series Voltez V, Mazinger Z and more recently, Pokemon and Dragonball Z.
There is, however, a softer side to the world of Japanese animation – the family-oriented cartoon films, which were largely produced in Studio Ghibli in Mitaka, a Tokyo suburb, a cultural undertaking of Hayao Miyazaki, the world-renowned Japanese animator, writer and director.
Studio Ghibli is for kids who enjoy animation films and want to know how they are produced – from the artists’ rough sketches to the computer and onto the screen. This is the home of My Neighbor Totoro (1988) and Mononoke-hime (Princess Mononoke) (1997). However, reservation is a must before coming over as the studio does not accommodate walk-in visitors.
Now, fast forward to the 21st century.
There is a new Tokyo emerging at Roppongi Hills district that is meant to be a symbol of contemporary Japan. Opened only last April, this thriving complex and cultural center in midtown Tokyo, will surely attract the cosmopolitan crowd. Take the Tokyo Panorama Tour at night and you will be treated to an amazing vista of the city, a 360-degree view of Tokyo as viewed from an observation deck located approximately 250 meters above the ground. Or you can take the Roppongi Hills Walking Tour that includes a walk through major buildings, a view of artists’ pieces, and a visit to the garden atop the Kayak-sack Complex.