Anyone who’s spent time in Japan will have left with questions. Lots of questions. Why don’t we have bullet trains in Europe or the US? How can Tokyo do hotdogs better than the Big Apple and red-sauce pasta joints more satisfying than the Milanese? Oh, and what is that dancing salaryman doing wearing a fish head? (Meet Kanpachiro, the mascot of Kanoya City, a peculiar place in Kagoshima prefecture that wants to be known equally for bonito and business.)Yes, Japan is known for quirk but it’s got lessons to teach the world too, from diplomacy to design, art to architecture. It’s a nation forging forward in everything from aviation to tackling the problem of ageing communities. And it’s set to up its visitor numbers after a successful Rugby World Cup this year – and the Olympics next. For these reasons and more besides, we made Japan the centrepiece of the December/January issue of Monocle, which hits newsstands today.