Over three million people a year come to look at whales. Sightseeing boats leave from former whaling villages such as Ogata. The ancient imperial capital, Kyoto, remains the most popular tourist destination. Over 35 million people visit it every year. Its sense of order is reflected in the phenomenon of the lifetime employer.
Many Japanese men define themselves by the company they work for rather than the job they do.
An employer's influence stretches to commanding employees' social time, and even to encouraging and approving marriages. Women mostly play a traditional role, running the home and supervising the all-important education of their children. They tend to work until the age of 26, when many will marry and continue to work part-time. Some Japanese women are, however, beginning to follow independent, long-term careers. More are entering the medical and legal professions.