The city of Tokyo (Japan) is the capital of the state and one of the largest megacities on our planet. In addition, it is the main industrial, financial, political and cultural center of the entire eastern region. For any tourist, it would be unthinkable to visit Japan and not visit its capital. This is not surprising, because, despite its modernity, national traditions are honored here, originating many centuries ago. In this article, we will talk in more detail about where Tokyo is located, its history and sights.
Short story
According to historical information, the first people appeared at the current location of the city back in the Stone Age. However, he received his great significance much later. In the mid-twelfth century, the current capital of Japan was a small fishing village called Edo. In 1590, a shogun named Tokugawa Ieyasu made her the capital of the shogunate and began to create long-term management institutions here. Since that time, the city began to develop actively, and already in the eighteenth century it turned into one of the largest not only in Japan, but throughout the world.
Tokyo received its current name in 1869, after Emperor Mutsuhito moved the state capital from Kyoto here. In the nineteenth century, industry and shipbuilding developed very rapidly here. In 1872, the first railway was laid, connecting the Japanese capital with its suburbs - Yokohama.
In the entire history of the city, the area where Tokyo is located has twice suffered from disasters. The first time this happened in 1923. Then, under the influence of a strong earthquake (9 points), almost half of the metropolis burned down. Killed more than 90 thousand local residents.
For the second time, the city was badly damaged as a result of its massive bombardment on March 8, 1945. She claimed the lives of 80 thousand people. Be that as it may, in both cases, Tokyo rebuilt and continued to develop. His temporary occupation after the Second World War did not stop it.
Geographical position
Speaking about where Tokyo is located, it is first of all necessary to note that, due to the geographical specifics, the administrative city borders cover not only the mainland areas, but also two chains of archipelagos that stretch for several hundred kilometers. The main part of the metropolis lies on the northwestern part of Tokyo Bay, on the island of Honshu. The territory of the city is more of a plain of Kanto. As for geographical coordinates, officially for the Japanese capital they are 35 degrees 41 minutes north latitude and 139 degrees 36 minutes east longitude.
It should be noted that all the important administrative, political, financial and cultural centers, as well as the most important transport hubs of the country, including Tokyo International Airport, are concentrated on the mainland. The metropolitan area is just over 2,188 square kilometers.
Climate
Tokyo is affected by a subtropical climate with mild winters and hot, dry summers. About 1300 millimeters of precipitation falls here on average annually. Their greatest number is characteristic for the period from June to July. The average air temperature in the summer ranges from 18 to 20 degrees. In winter, the northern winds become softer under the influence of the Pacific Ocean. At this time, the thermometer column, as a rule, is at a mark of 3 to 5 degrees below zero.
Snowfall here can be called a single occurrence. Along with this, as a rule, they occur every winter. It should also be noted that many scientists call this metropolis a vivid confirmation of how strongly the growing population of cities affects the climate.
The capital of Japan is located in one of the most dangerous regions of the planet. The fact is that in the south from it there is a junction of four lithospheric plates at once . All of them are in constant motion, in connection with which earthquakes often occur here. The most destructive of them was discussed earlier. Typhoons are a fairly common occurrence, however, as a rule, they do not have such significant consequences.
Administrative device
The main city of Japan is considered one of the prefectures, or rather, the metropolitan area, which consists of 62 administrative units. When it comes to Tokyo, it usually means 23 districts, which were united from 1889 to 1943. As of today, they are all equal in status to cities (each has measures and a city council).
The government of the capital is headed by the governor, whom residents choose by universal suffrage. The municipal center of the city is the headquarters located in Shinjuku. In addition, the state government of Japan is located in the metropolis.
Construction features
Bearing in mind where Tokyo is located, its residents are forced to construct buildings that are seismically safe. The country's construction legislation obliges companies engaged in this field of activity to apply modern technologies, which can minimize the effects of tremors. In this regard, such a concept as quarterly construction is absent in the Japanese capital. All buildings here are located at a certain distance from each other for safety reasons. City streets are designed in such a way that in the event of destruction of the house are based on the walls of neighboring buildings.
Large anthill
Tokyo is a city that is often called the "Great Anthill." The fact is that thousands of houses, buildings and structures were erected here along narrow streets. Two cars can miss each other with difficulty. Quarters with large shopping centers and skyscrapers contrast strongly with them. Among other things, the metropolis is shrouded in a network of wires, rails and roads. If on its main streets there are mainly buildings erected in the European style, then on more distant streets there are densely tuned, mostly two-story houses.
The Japanese are trying to make the most of every piece of land in Tokyo. The prices for it here are simply astronomical. The main reason for this is the acute lack of free space. As a result, the country's government is forced to gradually fall asleep to the sea. Thus, artificial islands are created on which not only residential areas are built, but even airports, factories, shopping centers, parks and other objects. According to rough estimates, by the end of 2015, the population in the Tokyo metropolitan area will reach 29 million people.
Transport
City transport in the Japanese capital works flawlessly. Local commuter trains and subways run late into the night and are the fastest mode of transport. Most of the people working in the metropolis, who live in its suburbs and on the outskirts, park their cars near the nearest station and change trains.
One cannot fail to note the Tokyo Haneda Airport, which has an average passenger turnover of 41 million people a year. In size, it takes sixth place on the planet. In order to unload it, another air gate - “Narita” was erected 60 kilometers from the city limits. You can get to this airport in Tokyo very quickly using the Shinkanzen high-speed train.
Among other things, the Japanese capital is also the largest shipping hub in the state. In order to enable sea ships to enter Tokyo, a modern port was erected in its suburb of Yokohama, connected to it by a deepened water channel. The average annual turnover of goods here is about 124 million tons.
sights
All Japan is proud of the local cultural heritage. Sights of Tokyo annually attract millions of tourists from all over the world. Local national parks (especially Meiji Grove, Ogasawara and Ueno) are considered quite popular among travelers.
Be that as it may, one of the most significant places here is the Imperial Palace with a garden, which is located in the heart of the metropolis. Its first buildings date back to the sixteenth century. They survived even after numerous strong earthquakes. The total area of buildings including gardens is about 7.5 square kilometers. Inside the complex is an imperial residence.
Shiba Park has Tokyo Tower. Reviews of local residents indicate that it is now a real symbol of the Japanese capital. Today it is only a tourist attraction, viewing platforms, halls and museums of which are visited by an average of 2.5 million tourists a year. The height of the tower is 332.6 meters.
Another popular local attraction is another television tower - Tokyo Sky Tree. Among other similar objects on the planet, it has the highest height (634 meters taking into account the antenna).
Tokyo Disneyland has become the most desirable place to visit for children.
Interesting Facts
- If Tokyo was a separate country, then in the list of states by GDP, it would take 15th place in the world.
- An asteroid was discovered in honor of the Japanese capital, which was discovered by local astronomers in 1900.
- Tokyo is a city in which about 35% of Japan's higher education institutions are concentrated. Every second student of the country studies in them.
- Due to the high seismic activity in the region, discussions often arise in the state regarding the possibility of transferring the capital to another city. The main contenders are Higashino, Nasu and Mie. Despite the government endorsing this idea, no further action has yet been taken.
- For 14 consecutive years, until 2006, Tokyo was known as the most expensive city on the planet in terms of cost of living and real estate, until the famous Economist.