7.Sumo

A sumo player is somebody of heavy build and has unique hairstyle. The sumo ceremonies before the game takes a longer time than the game. This is a character of sumo and shows a highly stylized Japanese culture.
Sumo players are called Rikisih, the place that the fight is done is called Dohyo. Women never step into the Dohyo, because a Dohyo is regarded as a life base fighting where men hide. Rikisihs move towards the corner called Sico, and turn with their left then right legs. After that, they rinse [wash out] their mouths with lustral water, clean themselves with toilet paper and sprinkle salt on the Dohyo. This means it is to remove bad luck. Then, they face their opponent, do a Sico and prepare and get ready. The referee is called a Kyo Ji, and he gives competition orders so the two player's work in harmony. If any part of a person's bodies touched the Dohyo, the one who is pused down is the loser.
When the fight is finised, each player nod their heads and go back, and the winner and loser should have a poker face.
Even if a judgement of the Kyo Ji seems wrong, Rikisihs must obey absolutely. Sumo is a single-round match so losers don't have any chances. This rule shows Japans culture that Japanese absolutely obey superiors and they give emphasis on manners and formality.

6.Hot Springs

In geographical features, there are many eruptions of volcanoes, so a lot of hot spring areas were formed in Japan. Japan tried hard to develop this characteristic, so Japan became famous for being the country with the best hot springs.
The origins of the spring areas is that in the past, doctors who couldn't administer medicines to patients went to spring areas and they felt the good effects. So after that, a lot of people visited spring areas to cure diseases. It was the start of the spring area's history.

The spring area was a small business, but it would be Ryokan, an inn combined spring area which keeps tradition. Then, the spring area was vitalized. In the Japan spring areas, Ryokan means that it gives rest and composure to Japanese so the awareness about the bathing culture in Japan is very different. Japanese think about bathing as "Go wash your dirty body" but "Go soak your body in warm water."

5.Kimono

Kimono is a word composed of the words ki and mono which means whole clothing. However, after accepting the Western Culture, nowadays kimono means Japan's traditional clothing.
In the past, kimono was not distinguised for men and women. But in Edo age, women's kimonos were more fancy. Women's kimonos changed in more various forms and became fancier. Men had to wear kimonos as a status and show their class about form, dyeing and so on. A modern kimono's basic form is long sleeves and long clothes that are tied by an Obi. The knot toward the back is important to a Women's kimono. Kimonos have changed as years go by, and it is considered a beautiful and an eleglant piece of clothing. Modern kimonos are identified and are worn in ceremonies or occassions like how Koreans wear Hanbok. Therefore, there are many kind of clothes, shapes, colors, and methods to wear following the time, place and purpose.

4.Shrines

If you tour Japan, you will see shrines very easily. A shrine keeps a spirit tablet about Japan's indigenous religions. Japan's indigenous religion is a faith that controls the lives of Japan as a whole. In a shrine of the whole country, more than 2000 gods were kept and there were lots of kinds of gods like guardians or protectors and dieties of villages, people who made remarkable achievements, and so on. Each god had a position and grant different wishes too, so you have to make a wish as your wish.

Every shine has a small door. It was made for resting birds because Japanese believed that birds are enjoys of gods. Also, in the shrine's gardens, there are trees and on the branches, white papers were tied to it and told a person's fortune by drawing lots.Japan's festival, Matsuri, was an ancestral ritual formalities ceremony. Japanese believed that if people devoted their lives to take care of the gods, there lives will be abundant.

3.Festival

Japan's festival is famous for Matsuri . Matsuri means a memorial service or festival. More precisely, it combines memorial service with festival. Matsuri was an ancestral ritual with a formal ceremony, but it got settled as a region play-culture because the people of the regions prepared the ceremony together themselves. Matsuri was held as a fitting character of the region. The best Matsuri in Japan are the Tokyo Kanda Matsuri, Osaka Tianjin Matsuri and Kyoto Gion Matsuri.

Tokyo Kanda Matsuri was derived from commemorating the victory of Sekigahara battle by the Dokogawa Eayas in 1603. The main god of Kanda Matsuri is a guardian diety of the Dokogawa Family. The Palanquin and Cart Parade, which takes to an ancestral tablet, is very fancy.





Osaka Tianjin Matsuri used the characters of OSaka that was close to the river and oceans. The Palanquin that takes to a guardian diety of the regions transports flowers with a decorated ship.







Kyoto Gion Matsuri handed down since 868. It has a character that the card is made fancy by putting a spear or bow. This cart is called Yamabko, and the parade of this cart takes a quarter of a day.





The Matsuri festival is native to Japan, but it has become a world-wide festival, so many visiting foreigners do not cease to go to Japan because they want to experience the beautiful Japanese culture through Matsuris.