Japan is a sovereign island nation in Eastern Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies off the eastern coast of the Asia Mainland (east of China, Korea, Russia) and stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and near Taiwan in the southwest. Japanese culture has evolved greatly from its origins. Japanese cuisine is based on combining staple foods, typicallyJapanese rice or noodles, with a soup and okazu—dishes made fromfish, vegetable, tofu and the like—to add flavor to the staple food.
Officially, Japan has 15 national, government recognized holidays.Traditionally, sumo is considered Japan's national sport. Television and newspapers take an important role in Japanese mass media, though radio and magazines also take apart.