The word Geisha is derived from ‘Gei’, which in Japanese means performance or entertainer, and ‘sha’, which means person, and dates back 400 years ago to the 'Edo' period. During this time the Geisha entertained at banquets and social gatherings by playing a Japanese guitar (called a Shamisen), and singing and giving dance performances.

There is often a misconception by some that Geisha's are prostitutes, but nothing could be further from the truth. Geisha are refined and cultured girls and women who are highly trained in a variety of traditional skills. Besides playing the Shamisen, singing and dancing, the Geisha perform the Japanese tea ceremony, and are well versed in the art of conversation. Many learn to speak English in order to entertain Western guests. Click here to read more about Geisha.

Ukiyo-e is probably the best known and most popular style of Japanese art.  Like artistic eras in other parts of the world, Ukiyo-e art was produced in a variety of different media, including painting.  Ukiyo-e, which is Japanese for "pictures of the floating world”, is primarily associated with a style of woodblock print making that depicted scenes of harmony and carefree everyday living.  Because it used woodblocks to make a number of prints, Ukiyo-e took art from being the domain of the upper classes and royalty.  This then made it more accessible to the common people. 

Ukiyo-e became popular around the mid-nineteenth century.  One of the first major artists in the Ukiyo-e was Monorobu Hishikawa, who produced single color prints made with woodblocks.  Hishikawa, who was an illustrator for a book publisher, had to argue very hard to convince his superiors that printing and selling single sheet artworks would be a lucrative enterprise.  This is certainly ironic, since Ukiyo-e became one of the most popular and lucrative forms of art the world has ever seen. Click here to learn more about this art...

Unfortunately, Japan is still shrouded by misconceptions but the truth about this country is that is a unique blend of traditional manners and boisterous exchanges.  When you arrive in Japan, you will be pleasantly surprised by what all there is to do.  Some of the activities and sites focus on the Japanese culture while others are very westernized. 

Today, Japan is home to more than 126 million people however, when the country was in the beginning stages, the earlier settlers were hunters, fishers, and gatherers all the way from Korea to Siberia.  Historians also believe the many migrants coming from Polynesia were a part of the original communities.  Then by 300 AD, sun worshippers from the Yamato kingdom had somewhat unified the nation through the course of alliance and conquest.  Unfortunately, when Shinto and Buddhism began to battle, Japanese’s traditional religion was diffused due to Shinto deities being manifested as Buddha.

Around the 9^th century, the Japanese empire was relatively stable.  The emperors dedicated most of their time to leisure instead of pursuing scholarly interests.  Throughout the years, numerous wars broke out, using the Samurai for defense.  While there are many different periods for the development and growth of Japan, you will find there to be five primary ones that include Kamakura, Muromachi, Momoyama, the Christian Century, and Tokugawa.  During the Kamakura Period from 1185 to 1333, the Mongol army repeatedly invaded Japan.  However, the Japanese people were able to keep them at bay although their leadership was weakened. The Muromachi Period from 1333 to 1576 involved a revolt by Ashikaga although is effectiveness began to fade, causing Japan to go into a civil war. Click here to read more.