A casual walk through Kobe in spring time
Half an hour from Osaka Station on a JR commuter train leads to Kobe, a charming port city quietly overlooking Osaka Bay. Kobe is a cultural destination where east meets west and both coexist in perfectly balanced harmony, it's a precious hidden gem with so much to offer, just waiting to be discovered. There is so much to do, so much to see and so much to eat in this charming bayside city known for its legendary mouthwatering Kobe beef, beautiful Western styled architecture owing to its unique heritage, charming parks and boardwalk by the ocean designed for a relaxing and scenic walk. There is no better season to visit Kobe than Spring, when the climate is pleasant, and beautiful cherry blossom trees can be found decorating the eccentric, yet scenic mix of traditional shrines and Western styled houses tucked away on the hillsides.
Chinatown ("Nankinmachi")
The bustling Chinatown in Kobe is an exact replica of a busy shopping street in Shanghai, an exciting and happening scene that finds ways to trigger all of your senses at the same time. With food vendors lined on both sides of the streets, you find yourself unexpectedly immersed along an irresistible culinary expedition. Even if you are not hungry, the incredible smell and sight will propel your eyes to comb through every single dish, as your inner curiosity attempts to figure out what's everything around you and imagine how they would taste given the fragrant and exotic smells. Meanwhile, the stall vendors are all yelling to get your attention, hoping you'll be the next patron to their businesses.
The most popular food stall in Nankinmachi is Roushouki, one of the earliest pioneers of the beloved "Nikuman". While these Chinese style steamed meat buns can be easily found at almost every convenient store throughout Japan nowadays, Roushouki is one of the first vendors who brought the dish over from Tianjin in Northern China and made them fresh every day for Japanese consumers since 1915. Especially on weekends, you will see long lines of people waiting outside this popular stall, waiting to get their hands on the ultimate original "Nikuman" steamed pork buns!
Aside from Roushouki, Nankinmachi is a great place to sample "tenshin", small plates of snacks, dumplings and sweets commonly found in tea houses throughout the Southern region of China. You can find all kinds of dumplings such as "shumai", deep fried spring rolls, roast duck wraps, along with many Kobe-influenced creations such as Kobe Beef burgers, deep fried minced beef patties known as "Minced Katsu", and an endless line of sweets and desserts. Bottom line is, please visit Nankinmachi with an empty stomach, and bring cash!
Kobe Port and Meriken Park
Spring is a great time to take a relaxing and lazy stroll by the bay at Kobe. From Chinatown, it's an easy 10 minutes’ walk to the bayside district. As soon as you see the ocean, you will find an area of Meriken park dedicated to the Great Hanshin Earthquake in 1995, when Kobe was severely damaged by a magnitude 6.9 earthquake. Keep walking towards the ocean, and you will see the iconic "Be Kobe" monument, a symbolic tribute to the local's progressive resilience that has successfully transformed Kobe from a wrecked wasteland following the earthquake, into the beautiful city full of life and energy that you get to explore today.
The Kobe Maritime Museum is located inside this distinctive building shaped like a sailing ship. Inside this museum, you will find a beautiful wooden ship, an exhibition of various navigation tools and equipment, and also the original "zero series" bullet train! For parents with children, you may consider visiting the Anpanman Museum nearby in a different building, where children will go through an interactive Anpanman experience filled with fun and laughter along the way!
If you'd like to get on a ship and experience Kobe's majestic charm from the ocean, you can join one of many short cruise excursions departing from the pier. One of the most popular excursions is the battleship cruise, done with a replica Edo-period battleship named Gozabune Atakemaru. While the modern adaptation of the original battleship is much safer and more comfortable, the original ship built under the Tokugawa Shogunate remains legendary to this day, as it has safeguarded Tokyo Bay and weathered the storms for over 50 years in the 17th century.
Finally, you will reach Harborland at the end of the boardwalk from Meriken Park. There is an impressive shopping complex consisting of 3 shopping malls, and a giant Ferris wheel offering fantastic views of Osaka Bay!
Shrines
Sannomiya Shrine
Sannomiya Shrine is located in the heart of downtown Kobe, a precious historical relic that has remain unchanged even as new buildings are erected and destructed in cycles over time. Sannomiya Shrine is the historical site of the 1868 "Kobe Incident", back when the Port of Kobe was newly opened to foreign merchants as a trading post, a bloody skirmish took place at Sannomiya Shrine when Japanese troops attacked passing foreign sailors who have crossed paths with a military procession. The act of cutting off and crossing through a military possession was regarded as disrespectful based on Japanese customs, and the offending sailors were injured as a result. After the sailors retreated to their ships, the foreign ships opened fire in retaliation. In the end, the leading general involved in the skirmish committed suicide in front of representatives from 6 foreign nations.
Ikuta Shrine
Located near Sannomiya Station, Ikuta Shrine is a Shinto shrine that worships the God of Love. Founded in early 3rd century, Ikuta Shrine is among some of the oldest shrines in Japan. Based on traditional beliefs, Ikuta Shrine is said to possess magical sacred powers in matchmaking and helping with finding true love......whether that's true or not, one thing for sure is that the beautiful temple is definitely super easy to fall in love with. The brightly painted orange exterior makes this shrine appealing and refreshing to visit, and even more so when adorned with all the lovely cherry blossom trees during springtime. You can also take a quiet walk through the enchanted forest, where you can make a wish in front of the Destiny's Spring; in return, the sacred Shinto God of Love will guide the way to finding true love, for as long as you entrust your fate with higher powers and let faith lead the journey.
Kitano Tenman Shrine
Located on top the scenic hillside, this scenic shrine offers an unobstructed panoramic view of Kobe City and Osaka Bay. Be prepared to climb up a steep flight of steps, but the view up top makes the journey worthy in the end.
Kitano Ijinkan-Gai
(Northern Foreigner's Street)
On this scenic hill, you will find all the preserved historical Western style houses built by merchants and diplomats in the late 19th century. Suddenly, you find yourself walking through a completely different world, as if you were far, far away from the Japan that you've always known. Imagine walking through narrow cobblestone alleyways snaking up towards the top of the scenic hills, passing by lavish Spanish mansions with Roman courtyards, while admiring the romantic skyline of Kobe and Osaka Bay from the top of the world… welcome to the Beverly Hills of the East!
Many of these houses welcome paying visitors, and as if time has been frozen, walking into these historical mansions is akin to time traveling. These mansions are time capsules that did not advance with the ticking clock; for the most part, they managed to preserve their original extravagance throughout the 20th century, still maintaining their exquisite affluence after all these years to this day.
If all of this wasn't enough to make you consider a visit to Kobe next time you are in Japan, check out even more things to do in Kobe here. We hope this blog post inspires you to pack your bags and get going! We can't wait to welcome you to Japan once again after the border opens for tourism! But until then, there is no better time to start researching and building your next trip, and we are here to help! Stay tuned for future posts just like this, featuring selected destinations in Japan with plenty of insider knowledge.
