Kobe

Kobe is the capital of Hyogo Prefecture and one of largest cities of Japan. Located between the sea and the Rokko mountain range, Kobe is also considered one of Japan's most attractive cities.

Kobe has been an important port city for many centuries. Kobe Port was one of the first Japanese ports to be opened to foreign trade in the late Edo Period, and the city remains one of Japan's more cosmopolitan cities.

In January 1995, Kobe was hit by the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake, which killed over 5000 people and destroyed tens of thousands of buildings. A decade later, the city is completely rebuilt, and few signs of the terrible event are left.

Great Hanshin Awaji Earthquake: On January 17, 1995 at 5:46 am, the city of Kobe was hit by the Great Hanshin Awaji Earthquake, resulting in the death of more than 5000 people and the destruction of tens of thousands of homes.

The Disaster Reduction Museum, part of the Disaster Reduction and Human Renovation Institution, was opened in 2002 to commemorate the tragic event and to educate visitors about earthquakes and disaster prevention.

The museum includes a large screen theater with realistic images of the earthquake's destructiveness, a documentary film about the recovery process, lots of information about the earthquake and various interactive games about disaster prevention.

Sorakuen is a traditional Japanese landscape garden in the center of Kobe. The garden used to be part of the residence of Kodera Kenkichi, a former mayor of Kobe, but was opened to the public in 1941.

All the buildings, which had originally stood in the garden, were destroyed in the war, except for a stable. The former home of a foreign trader, the Hassam House, was moved into the Sorakuen Garden from the Kitano district in 1961.

Kitano-cho is a city district at the foot of theRokko mountain range where many Western business people settled down in the second half of the 19th century, after the Port of Kobe was opened to foreign trade.A number of former mansions of Western residents remain in the area and are open to the public. Most charge an admission fee of about 300 to 500 yen.

The area also offers many pleasant cafes,restaurants and boutiques and is a favorite among young Japanese couples.

Kobe Harborland is a shopping and entertainment district along the waterfront ofKobe's port area, offering many cafes, restaurants, shopping malls, a Ferris wheel and other forms of entertainment. It is popular dating spot among young couples.

Mount Rokko (931 meters) is the highest peak in the Rokko mountain range, the mountain range which provides the pleasant green backdrop to the city of Kobe. Panoramic views of the heavily urbanized Hanshin region (Kobeand Osaka), can be enjoyed from the mountain and are particularly spectacular around sunset.

Various small tourist attractions can be found on Mount Rokko, including a botanical garden, a music box museum, a pasture with flowers and sheep, Japan's first golfcourse and Rokko Garden Terrace, a pleasant complex of a few restaurants and shops and an observation deck.

A circular bus line (running in clockwise direction only) connects the various attractions with the top stations of the Rokko Cablecar (to central Kobe) and the Rokko Arima Ropeway (to Arima Onsen).

The Akashi Kaikyo Bridge is with a length of almost four kilometers the world's longest suspension bridge. It spans the Akashi Strait (Akashi Kaikyo) between Kobeand Awaji Island and is part of the Kobe-Awaji-NarutoExpressway, which connects Honshu with Shikoku. The Akashi Kaikyo Bridge was opened in 1998.

The Bridge Exhibition Center at the foot of the bridge (Kobe side) provides well presented information about the planning and construction of the bridge and about other suspension bridges around the world, although the detailed explanations are available in Japanese only.

The Maiko Marine Promenade consists of observatory hallways under the bridge's platform, about 50 meters above the water. Accessed by elevator from the base of the bridge (Kobe side), the hallways offer interesting views of the bridge's interior, the Akashi Strait and Osaka Bay.

Arima Onsen is a hot spring town, still located within the city limits ofKobe, but on the opposite side of Mount Rokko from the city center. With a history of over one thousand years, it is one of Japan's oldest hot spring resorts.

Visitors to Arima Onsen can enjoy hot spring bathing at public bath houses or at some ryokan (Japanese style inn). Several ryokan open their baths not only to staying guest, but also to daytrippers, typically for an admission fee of between 500 and 1500 yen and during daytime only.

Although Arima Onsen basically has a modern face today, one can still find several old buildings and some nice temples when strolling through the town center's narrow streets. Due to its compact size, Arima Onsen can be explored entirely on foot.