# data[].attributes.body
There are 3 forms of Japanese writing: Kanji, the adopted Chinese writing system, and the two phonetic systems, hiragana and katakana ("Culture of Japan - history, people, traditions, women, beliefs, food, family, social, marriage", 2018; Japanese Writing systems, 2015).

# data[].attributes.body
Japanese music consists of a variety of music genres and gained great Western influence after the Meiji Restoration. However, tradition and culture run deep in Japanese music including Gagaku shown below, which is orchestral court music. Shomyo, or Buddhist chants, is another form of traditional music. Two traditional instruments include biwa, a form of short-necked lute, and taiko, a Japanese drum that varies in size and shape (Deschenes, 2001).

# data[].attributes.body
Japan is approximately the size of California and is made of 4 main islands and nearly 4,000 smaller islands. Japan is broken down into 8 regions and 47 prefectures. Tokyo, the seat of the Emperor of Japan and the Japanese government, is on the largest island of Japan, Honshu, and sits in the Kanto region. In October 2015, Tokyo had a population of 13.491 million or 11% of the total population in Japan. It is also the most densely populated area (Tokyo Metropolitan Government, 2018).

# data[].attributes.body
Compulsory school in Japan consists of 9 years of schooling including 6 years of elementary(grades 1-6) and 3 years of lower secondary school (grades 7-9) (MEXT, 2018).

# data[].attributes.body
Buddhism in Japan is practiced through two schools; Theravada which is the way of monastic life, and Mahayana which is practice by in a way that supports the general lifestyle of the average person (Hammer, 2018).

# data[].attributes.body
Nisshoki, the national flag of Japan symbolizes the rising sun, honesty and integrity, in relation to the goddess Amaterasu, the most important of the Shinto deities (cartwright, 2012; "Do You Know The Meaning Of Japanese Flag?", 2016).

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Do You Know The Meaning Of Japanese Flag?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Japanese flag is really simple in design, which is a simplistic white flag with a red disc in the middle. Its red round disc in the center represents the rising sun in the east, so that Japan is called as "Land of the Rising Sun". Let's know more about Japanese flag.

# data[].attributes.body
A unique feature of the Japanese classroom is that students eat a standardized lunch provided by the school. They eat the lunch in the classroom with their teacher. This practice builds positive teacher-student relationships, as well as, ensures that the students are eating a healthy and well-balanced meal (Bright Side, 2018).

# data[].attributes.body
Shinto is the ancient "religion" of Japan that governs the relationship between gods, people, nature and the state through ritual ("Culture of Japan - history, people, traditions, women, beliefs, food, family, social, marriage", 2018; swarthimoorthy, 2016).

# data[].attributes.body
Schools in Japan require students to be responsible for cleaning up after themselves within their classroom and other assigned areas throughout the school to build a sense of responsibility group work ethic, and respect for the environment (Gordenker, 2001).

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Elementary ichinensei (1st grade) students cleaning their classroom.

# data[].attributes.body
80% of Japan is made up of mountains that are heavily forested. Japan also is known for its volcanoes including Mount Fuji, as well as, unnavigable rivers and streams. Because of the limited area for agriculture and usable living space, Japan's population is heavily concentrated (Tokyo Metropolitan Government, 2018).

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
A little Video of my Trip to Japan which introduced me to the world of Japanese Cultures and FOOD here I select My top 10 foods in Japan which I learned to love and still love to this very day !

# data[].attributes.body
Important aspects of social interaction, the bow and the level of formality in speech demonstrate the relationship between those involved  along the social hierarchical structure ("Greetings, etiquette, etc.", n.d.).