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        <div class="chapter_number">Chapter 22: Cultural Notes</div>
        <div class="chapter_name">The Countryside</div>
        <div class="blurb">For many many people, the word Japan conjures up pictures of the
        big cities. But one of my favorite aspects of Japan is the countryside. Japan has 130 million people packed into an area
        the size of California,
        so it might seem that there wouldn&rsquo;t be much countryside to be found. But you
        don&rsquo;t have to travel far outside the city to get into wide open spaces and
        small farming communities.</div>
        <div><img src="divider@2x.png" class="divider" /></div>

<p class="bodycopy">One of my favorite things to do in Japan is to take the train out to
        some small, country town, and just walk around for the day. In town, you&rsquo;ll
        find lots of small-scale rice fields, perhaps filling a vacant lot between two
        houses. As you get <nobr>further out,</nobr> you&rsquo;ll be able to walk down dikes between
        larger fields, or follow maintenance roads.</p>

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<p class="bodycopy">Japan
        is a country formed completely by volcanism, so everywhere you look there are
        hills and mountains. Nothing is as beautiful as the cool green of a terraced
        rice field on a hillside dotted with traditional Japanese houses.</p>


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<p class="bodycopy">No matter how far you are off the beaten path, you&rsquo;ll come
        across small Shinto shrines. Unlike Buddhism, which was an import from China,
        Shinto (Japanese: <i>shintou</i>) is a
        purely Japanese religion dating all the way back to before written history.
        Shinto emphasizes the <i>spirit</i> in
        everything in the world&mdash;animals, trees, even rocks&mdash;and is deeply respectful
        of nature.</p>

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<p class="bodycopy">For lunch, stop in at a small mom-and-pop restaurant to get
        a glimpse of local life. Perhaps a middle-school student in uniform will be
        reading a comic book as he snacks on his way home. An elderly couple might be
        sharing a pot of tea. For a moment, you can step into a world that is not
        frequented by outsiders. Try out your Japanese with the shopowners. Out in the
        countryside, you might well be the first foreigner they&rsquo;ve ever talked to.</p>


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<p class="bodycopy">After lunch, stop at the convenience mart (yes, they&rsquo;re
        everywhere, even in the tiniest town) and pick up a beverage for the road. The
        variety of beverages is very great in Japan, with everything from chilled
        green tea to hot coffee in a can, to soft drinks with bits of apple or orange
        in them. Everything is delicious, so pick out a couple and enjoy them on your
        walk. Japan
        is different from many countries in that it is legal to drink alcohol publicly,
        so you can even grab a beer if you like.</p>

<p class="bodycopy">If you don&rsquo;t see a convenience store, surely you will come
        across one of the millions of vending machines scattered across the country. It
        seems that if there is a patch of unused street and an electrical outlet
        available, someone has placed a vending machine there.</p>

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                <div><img id="countryside_vending_machine" src="countryside_vending_machine@2x.jpg" class="photo_image_withcaption photo_fill" onclick="showFullScreenPhoto('vending_machines_residential_street_full');" /></div>
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                    <div class="photo_caption">Vending machines on a residential street, presumably plugged directly into the electric pole.<span class="photo_location"></span></div>
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<p class="bodycopy">Of course, walking is probably the most accessible way to
        see the countryside, but it&rsquo;s not the only way. If you have a car, you&rsquo;ll be
        able to take longer trips which, if you&rsquo;re traveling with Japanese companions,
        will often culminate in a trip to some local <i>onsen</i>. Or perhaps you&rsquo;ll visit a reconstructed castle or the site
        of a historic battle. Any way you cut it, there&rsquo;s a lot to see and do.</p>

<p class="bodycopy">There&rsquo;s something surreal about a trip through the
        countryside of Japan.
        It&rsquo;s like being in a different world for a day. Although the cities offer more
        in the way of modern conveniences, I highly recommend a trip out to the
        country.</p>

    
          
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