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Kōbe (神戸) is one of Japan's underappreciated cities. A cosmopolitan port city with an international flavor hemmed in by Mt. Rokko, it constantly comes up number one in expatriate rankings of the best place to live in Japan.
A port in what would become Kōbe was established as a concession to western powers in 1868, during the time when Japan was opening to the world. Nagasaki and Yokohama had already begun serving foreign ships nine years earlier. Today, a synagogue, a mosque (Japan's first), a Sikh temple (also Japan's first), aOn January 17, 1995, an earthquake measuring 7.3 on the Richter Scale occurred at... Read more
Kōbe (神戸) is one of Japan's underappreciated cities. A cosmopolitan port city with an international flavor hemmed in by Mt. Rokko, it constantly comes up number one in expatriate rankings of the best place to live in Japan.
A port in what would become Kōbe was established as a concession to western powers in 1868, during the time when Japan was opening to the world. Nagasaki and Yokohama had already begun serving foreign ships nine years earlier. Today, a synagogue, a mosque (Japan's first), a Sikh temple (also Japan's first), aOn January 17, 1995, an earthquake measuring 7.3 on the Richter Scale occurred at 5:46 AM JST near the city. The quake killed 6,433, made 300,000 homeless and destroyed large parts of the port facilities and other parts of the city. It was one of the most costly natural disasters in modern history. The earthquake notably destroyed the Hanshin Expressway, an elevated freeway which dramatically toppled over: within Japan, the earthquake is known as the Great Hanshin Earthquake (or the Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake). In the last 10 years, the city has recovered completely but lost huge portions of its ship traffic.
Kōbe's core, and central business district surrounds Sannomiya station, rather than Kobe Station. Sannomiya station has a tourist information office well-stocked with area maps. Be sure to ask for the coupon book, which offers discounts (10% to 20%) for many attractions. The Japanese characters for Sannomiya station on Japan Railways (三ノ宮) differ from the Sannomiya station on other railways (三宮).
If you are planning to travel beyond city limits you might want to consider using the tickets from Surutto Kansai. For use in West of Japan include Kobe, there are some other useful tickets: A rechargeable smart card, ICOCA, is used on rail, subway and bus networks in Kansai area, Okayama, Hiroshima, Nagoya (Kintetsu) and Tokyo (JR East).
The Hankyu (阪急), Hanshin (阪神) and JR lines cross Kōbe in a west-east direction and provide the cheapest and fastest way to travel across town. Each of these three lines has their own station located around the busy central Sannomiya shopping district and each provides access to different points of interest.
For visitors with a Japan Rail Pass, JR will be of the most use. Shin-kaisoku (新快速 - Special Rapid) trains stop at both Sannomiya and Kōbe stations and provide the best way to travel west towards Akashi and Himeji or east towards Kyoto and Osaka. Boarding a Futsu (普通 - Local) from either Sannomiya or Kōbe stations will allow you to easily access to Motomachi (for Nankin-machi and Meriken-park), Nada (for the sake brewing district and museums), Rokkomichi (for buses to Mt. Rokko) and Sumiyoshi (for the Rokko Liner to Rokko Island).
The Hankyu and Hanshin lines are of less use to tourists but you may be forced to use them to visit certain sights. Koshien Stadium, home of the baseball team the Hanshin Tigers, is easily accessible from Hanshin Koshien Station and both lines provide service to Shinkaichi for transfer to the private Kobe Dentetsu line and access to the famed Arima Onsen hot-spring district.
Kōbe has two subway lines. The Kaigan Line runs along the coast, and the Yamate-Seishin Line runs toward the mountains. Both are more expensive than ordinary trains and unlikely to be of use for the traveler, except when connecting to Shin-Kōbe, the station located north of the city where the Sanyo Shinkansen stops. If you want to explore Kobe, there is a one-day-pass for both lines (1日乗車券; Ichinichijoshaken).
North of Shin-Kobe station, the Yamate subway runs over the Hokushin Express Line. Trains run 7.5 km underground and terminate at Tanigami Station, from which you can transfer to the Shintetsu Arima Line for Arima-guchi Station and Arima Onsen.
The automated Port Liner links Sannomiya to the reclaimed port district south of the city and continues over the Kobe Sky Bridge to Kobe Airport. Likewise, the Rokko Liner links the Rokko Island area to JR Sumiyoshi station.
Kobe has a comprehensive city bus system, which is often your best choice when traveling to areas located north of the city, away from the predominately east-west running train and subway lines. Schedules and boarding locations can be obtained from the tourist information office below JR and Hankyu Sannomiya stations.
The city also operates a loop-line tourist bus that travels around scenic spots and famous tourist locations in Kobe including the Kitano Ijinkan streets, Nankin-machi, and Meriken Park. These distinctive old-fashioned green buses can be boarded are 15 stops between the Shin-Kobe area and Harborland. Boarding locations are indicated by green and red signs on the side of the road. Buses run at 15-20 minute intervals and one loop takes approximately 70 minutes.
Kobe has several ropeways that travel up Mount Rokko. One that is near a major station is the Shin-Kobe Ropeway, a 5-minute walk from Shin-Kobe station. The ropeway, reputed to have one of Kobe's best scenic views, runs up to the Nunobiki Herb Park. Combination tickets are also sold which include the Nunobiki Herb Park.
Kōbe is thin in the north-south direction, but long in the west-east direction. Since much of it is built on a hill, a reasonable itinerary is to take the bus up the hill and walk down. If you get lost, find the mountains or the harbor. The mountains are in the north, and the harbor’s in the south.
Kobe's main attraction for the Japanese is its concentration of Western-style houses, some dating back to the days when Kobe was opened for foreign trade in 1868. Europeans who grew up in similar scenery may find them less fascinating.
Kōbe is a well-known center of sake production and many sake breweries are in the Nada (灘) area and have tours or museums open to the public. You can pick up a map of the sake breweries at the tourist information office in Sannomiya.
Kobe has a large number of restaurants offering international cuisine.
Kōbe is known worldwide for its Kobe beef, exquisitely marbled, very fatty and very expensive beef. Recommended for a splurge. At the opposite end of the culinary spectrum is sobameshi (そば飯), a concoction of fried rice and noodles mixed together, which is cheap, filling and pretty much unique to Kobe.
Kōbe's specialty is tachinomiya, literally stand-and-drink bars.
Kōbe's shopping is clustered around the Sannomiya train station and the Center-Gai shopping arcade leading off from it. Many of the unassuming little cafes and specialty shops in the arcade, in fact, have histories tracing back well over a hundred years.
Piazza Kōbe (ピアザ神戸) and Motokō Town (モトコータウン) are the two names of essentially one long arcade where all manner of second-hand goods are sold. These stores are underneath the JR lines, running from Sannomiya station, past Motomachi Station, to Kōbe Station. Motoko sells a variety of things such as books, clothes, shoes, accessories, knives, lighters, toys. You can get heaps of things.
LOCAL TIME
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May 27, 2022
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All I knew about the city of Kobe is that the region is famous for the marble beef. As the story goes, a pink meat with the finest white veins just melts in your mouth. Young bulls graze in the meadows; they are fed rice, watered beer or sake! Kobe is just 31 km from Osaka. In general, I decided... |
Arima is known for its hot springs since ancient times. It is located on Mount Rokko, near Kobe. Officially, this settlement seems to be included into the city. People come there to get away from the bustle of big cities and enjoy the charm of nature. The water in the onsen is of two types: Gold... |
I continue my sets of the reviews about Kobe. The population of the city is 1.4 million people. For a long time, it had remained an important port city. Along with Yokohama and Nagasaki, it was opened to foreign trade. In 1995, there was a strong earthquake, which led to a tremendous destruction... |
Today I’m going to tell you about my trip to Kobe, Japan.
This is the custom’s head office.
Here’s Meriken Park.
This is a view from the observation deck of the tower of the port.
I was just walking around the city, and photographing everything.
It’s Jewish menorah.
Here’s the Great Hanshin... |
Hey, everyone!
I offer you a small selection of photos on various topics taken before the New Year on the streets of
Osaka
and
Kobe
...
Sometimes the dawn is very gloomy:
You don't even want to wake up on such a morning:
And sometimes, on the contrary, the sky is... |
Here is the third and last part of photos from my trip to
Kobe
...
You can find such cute pandas there:
Christmas trees and palm trees - it's like two years ago when I celebrated Christmas in Miami. But here the weather is slightly cooler....
The sun was almost gone... |
Here is the second part of the photos from my trip to
Kobe
...
This is the
Kobe Port Tower
- we have to look inside!
The upper deck offers a good view of
Kobe town
:
Some active construction is happening nearby.....
You can see Umeda far away on the... |