Guide to Kobe - showing Mum around

Before leaving the Kansai region we did one more overnight trip to check out Kobe and Arima Onsen - the map below might be useful to keep a track of the places I'm talking about - we rode lots of different forms of transport those two days; train, bus, two ropeways and a cable car, and of course there was a lot of walking too.

Technically we could have done this in two day trips but it ended up costing about the same and I found a hostel that had capsule-hotel-esque beds in the dorm room so figured this might be my best chance to try one out - they were actually pretty spacious (I'm guessing they would be smaller in an actual capsule hotel but sometimes those are hard to stay in as a girl) and I preferred them to a bunk bed because you actually had a private area

Kobe Overview

Kobe is the capital of Hyogo Prefecture and is the sixth largest city in Japan. Kobe has been an important port city for many centuries and its port was among the first to be opened to foreign trade in the 19th century. I really like the vibe there because it reminds me a bit of Wellington with the harbour and hills with a bunch of funky shops, good restaurants and cafes in-between. I have visited quite a few times during my year here seeing something a little bit different each time, but always having some of the delicious cake the city is known for. The first time I visited was with Stuart in October, unfortunately it was raining so we just wandered around the Kitano district which is full of western houses and checked out the slightly old-school Harbourland. He enjoyed it much more the second time when we stopped off on the way to Hiroshima and went to check out the Hakatsuru Sake Brewery in the Nada District and have some Kobe Beef for lunch. If I haven't convinced you that its worth a quick trip out there yet, another exciting time to visit Kobe is for the Luminarie Light Festival held in December ever year since 1995 commemorating the Great Hanshin Earthquake of that year. It can be a bit crowded but is very pretty - you can see my pictures here. It was nice to take Mum back here for one last visit to Kobe to revisit some places and explore a few new places too, check it out...

Chinatown (Nankinmachi)

Nankinmachi is five minutes walk south of Motomachi Station, a ten minute walk southwest of Sannomiya Station or a five minute walk north of Meriken Park. We walked from Sannomiya station through this compact Chinatown towards Meiken Park. There are two main streets running through the district, meeting each other at a small plaza in the center that are packed with shops, restaurants and food stands that sell popular items. The area was developed by Chinese merchants who settled near Kobe Port after the port was opened to foreign trade in 1868. As the Chinatown developed, it became known as Nankinmachi after Nanjing, the former Chinese capital.

Meriken Park

Built on an outcropping of reclaimed land, this is a nice waterfront park covered in grassy lawn and open courtyards dotted with a collection of modern art installations and fountains. It is home to some of the city's more iconic contemporary architecture such as the red Kobe Port Tower and the Kobe Maritime Museum. The park was devastated by the 1995 Great Hanshin Earthquake, but has now become a popular spot for locals and tourists again. A small memorial in the park commemorates the many victims who were killed in the port during the earthquake. It preserves a short section of damaged waterfront as a reminder of the earthquake's tremendous, destructive power.

Kobe Nunobiki Herb Garden
Hours: 10:00 - 17:00 (first ropeway up 9:30, last down 16:45 slightly later in summer)
Admission: Y900 / Y1400 (entry to Herb Garden and one-way / return ropeway ticket)

This was somewhere I had wanted to go for a while, unfortunately the first trip it was raining, and then it was closed from December through March for renovations (my second and third trips) so even though the weather wasn't amazing on this, my fourth (and probably final) trip to Kobe I decided to go up with Mum (in all fairness she probably appreciated the Herb Garden more than Stuart would have anyway). There are over 5,000 herbs and flowers (200 varieties) on display and on a clear day there is a good view of Kobe. Within the park there is are restaurants and cafes (where you can enjoy dishes made with seasonal herbs), a Green Shop (with various herb and aroma gifts) and the Aroma Museum.

The Shin-Kobe Ropeway is actually split into two parts, most people get a return ticket and go all the way to the top, walking down through the Herb Garden and ride it back down from halfway. Rather than rushing it to make the last ropeway down, Lonely Planet said "you can easily walk down to the bottom station from the Herb Garden in about 30minutes" so we decided to do that. When we got out of the herb garden there was a sign in English pointing left that said "JR Shin Kobe Station" and a sign in Japanese pointing right that said "JR Shin Kobe Station via the waterfalls".... the second sounded much more appealing than just following the paved road all the way down so we went right, and then following the signs headed left down some stairs into the bush...I had read about a few people walking up from Shin Kobe station past the waterfalls so figured it couldn't be too bad going down, unfortunately it had been raining and we were a little bit worried about losing light (which isn't ideal when some of the bush is quite thick). With only Japanese signs Mum wasn't much help and I wasn't super confident I was leading us the right way but we eventually made it down to the station and it turned out to be a really nice walk, here is some information about some of the sights we saw along the way (only in Japanese sorry). Met up with Colleen afterwards for an izakaya dinner and in true Kobe style we rewarded ourselves with cake at the end of it all (no, not the entire plate, they bring one slice of each cake to your table so you can choose!)

Mount Rokko

At 931 metres, this is the highest peak in the Rokko mountain range, and provides the pleasant green backdrop to the city of Kobe. If you are there around sunset you can apparently enjoy panoramic views of the heavily urbanized Hanshin region (Kobe and Osaka) but we were there mid-morning and it was so foggy you could barely see 20 metres in front of you, however the ride up the Rokko Cablecar (opened in 1932) was beautiful and well worth it. 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 golf course and Rokko Garden Terrace, a pleasant complex of a few restaurants and shops and an observation deck however due to the weather we just took the circular bus line (running clockwise that connects many of the attractions) to the Rokko Arima Ropeway.

To get there from Sannomiya Station, take the Hankyu Kobe Line to Rokko Station (7 minutes, Y180), and then it is a 10 minute bus ride by Kobe City Bus number 16 to the base station of the Rokko Cablecar (note you can also get this bus from JR Rokkomichi station or Hanshin Mikage Station and it takes 15 and 25 minutes to the cablecar station respectively, both are Y200). Once you are there the cablecar ride up the mountain takes 10 minutes and costs Y570 one way or Y1000 for a round trip ticket. You can also get the "Omote Rokko Shuyu Joshaken" ticket that includes unlimited use of the circular bus and return cable car ticket for Y1300. It really was a beautiful journey.

Arima Onsen

Basically wikitravel told us there were two ways to get into Arima Onsen, "the cheap and practical way, or the fun but expensive way". Mum really likes cablecars, ropeways, gondolas etc (hell she even likes glass elevators)  so we wanted to take the fun way in, and out of Arima Onsen so purchased a return trip for the first leg of the journey (the Rokko Cablecar). Unfortunately seeing as this was only a day trip we underestimated the time and the amount of changes it would take to get there from Sannomiya = train, bus, cablecar, bus, ropeway = and then back again...so I would recommend doing the "fun and expensive" option for just one of the legs. Seeing as the Rokko Arima Ropeway itself takes about 12 minutes and costs Y980 one way, Y1770 return, you can save a small amount by getting the "Rokko Arima Katamichi Joshaken" ticket which gives you a one way ticket for the Mount Rokko cablecar, unlimited use of the circular bus at the top and a one way ticket for the Arima Onsen ropeway for Y1700. The "cheap and practical" option is to take the Kobe Railway Arima Line to the last stop; Arima Onsen. You can meet up with this line by taking the Hanshin, Hankyu or Sanyo Line to Shinkaichi just west of Kobe or if you come in by JR, take the Kobe Subway from Sannomiya to Tanigami, and connect there to the Kobe Arima Line. In either case, make sure to transfer at the Arimaguchi station onto the (one stop only) Arima Onsen line. The whole trip will cost around Y900-1000 and take about half an hour.

This is a famous hot spring town within the city limits of Kobe, but on the opposite side of Mount Rokko from the city centre. It is close enough from Kobe and Osaka to be a popular day trip or weekend getaway as it feels like you are really up in the mountains. Although Arima Onsen has a modern look today and is pretty built up, there are still many narrow lanes and wooden buildings in the centre of town. Because it is compact you can explore it on foot once you are there, and there are several hot spring sources, nice temples and shrines and a small hot spring museum (Y200) to be discovered. With a history of over one thousand years, Arima Onsen is considered one of Japan's oldest hot spring resorts and has often stood at or near the top of onsen rankings.

The town has two types of hot spring waters which spring up at various sources around town: the Kinsen ("gold water") is colored brown with iron deposits and is said to be good for skin ailments and muscle pain, while the clear Ginsen ("silver water") contains radium and carbonate and is said to cure various muscle and joint ailments.Mum had never been to onsen before and after the hiking around the waterfalls yesterday we decided to indulge in both. I am glad we did Gin no Yu first as it was a bit smaller an less busy (probably helped that it was earlier in the day too) - here are the details for both of them from Japan Guide

Kin no Yu
Open: 8:00 to 22:00 (Admission ends at 21:30) Closed: 2nd and 4th Tues each month (Wed if Tues is a holiday), Jan 1 Admission: 650 yen (Kin no Yu only), 1000 yen (Kin no Yu and Gin no Yu)
Located at the centre of town, Kin no Yu is the larger of Arima Onsen's two public bath houses. It features two indoor "gold" water baths of varying temperatures for each gender. Outside the bath house there are a free foot bath (ashiyu) and a drinking fountain fed by thermal waters.

Gin no Yu

Hours: 9:00 to 21:00 (Admission ends at 20:30) Closed: 1st and 3rd Tues each month (Wed if Tues is a holiday), Jan 1 Admission: 550 yen (Gin no Yu only), 1000 yen (Gin no Yu and Kin no Yu)

Gin no Yu stands further back in the town, and is the smaller of Arima's two public bath houses. It has one large indoor bath for each gender, featuring the clear, "silver" water.

One of the best things about living in Sakai is that I am only about 1-2 hours away from so many beautiful places in the Kansai region, I was really lucky that Wellington has a sister city relationship with Sakai and that I was placed here. Ive enjoyed exploring the area and I hope you will too ;) Will hopefully fill you in on some of the history of Sakai in the next blog.

Introducing Mum to the people who have made this year in Osaka so special

It was great to have Mum come and visit. It was her first time in Asia since a few days in Singapore about 28 years ago on the way home from a Contiki Tour in Europe, and although she wanted to see a few of the sights she also wanted to just get some insight into my life here and why I keep coming back to Japan - so I figured the best way to show her was with food and meeting some of the amazing people I have the privilege of calling friends here.

I have been really lucky that both times I have lived in Japan I have come away with an awesome "international family" as well as a whole bunch of Japanese friends. On the way home from Nara we went out to have kushikatsu for dinner with a few of them in Shinsekai - thanks for making it out guys ;) Just as with my international family from Tokyo I am looking forward to keeping in touch, and catching up somewhere in the future - be it in Japan, NZ, your home or somewhere in the middle.

As well as my international family here, my workmates have become my Japanese family, so I had them over for dinner so they could meet my Mum too (as they have met Stuart and my brothers too). Special mention has to go out to Tsuda-san (she was the person who looked after me at work until April when she went on maternity leave) and her husband Pi-chan who became like an older sister and brother to me and Nagai-san (my senior) and her husband and children who I have made a special bond with. Although I will be leaving Japan in a month I hope to keep in touch with as many of these wonderful people as I can, they have been so much more than workmates to me over the past year.

On the theme of keeping in touch, we took a train an hour north after work on the Saturday to catch up with Sanae and her new husband. Sanae stayed with us as an exchange student for 6 weeks in 1999 (after I had stayed with her family for 6 weeks in 1998) and my Mum hadn't seen her since then. Stuart and I went to her wedding in October and her first baby is due at the end of July so it was great to see her one last time before I go home.

And life in Osaka just wouldn't be the same without eating some more delicious food to give us energy for a spot of shopping. Mum and I had afternoon tea at Yogurtland, explored around Shinsaibashi and I also introduced her to the wonderful world of kaitenzushi (sushi train) - glad she liked it ;)

Guide to Nara - showing Mum around

Mum was in Japan for exactly two weeks so between a long weekend trip to Kyoto (below), an overnight trip to Hyogo (Kobe and Arima) and a four-day trip to Okinawa (blog and photos coming soon) we went for a day trip to Nara. As this was my third (and final) day trip to Nara in my year in Japan - first with the Kiwi kids on the Sakai Wellington Educational Exchange, and then Stuart on his first trip to Japan (the boys went on their own when they were here in December) – I have included some information that might be useful if you are heading there - thanks to the help of Japan Guide (again), Lonely Planet and Wikipedia/travel

Until the 7th century Japan had no permanent capital, as Shinto taboos concerning death stipulated that the capital be moved with the passing of each Emperor, This practice died out under the influence of Buddhism and with the Taika reforms of 646 when the entire country came under imperial control. Nara (called Heijō-kyō in those days) was the first capital of Japan from 710 to 784, lending its name to the Nara Period. According to an ancient Japanese book the name “Nara” Is derived from the Japanese work “narashita” meaning “made flat”. The temples of Nara remained powerful even beyond the move of the political capital to Heian-kyō in 794. Unlike Kyoto, Nara is quite compact and a lot of things are within walking distance from the station inside Nara Park - the park is about 20 minutes walk from JR Nara Station or 5 minutes walk from Kintetsu Nara Station - here are the places that I took Mum to on our day trip

Kofukuji
Hours: Always open (grounds), 9:00 - 17:00 (Treasure Hall and Eastern Golden Hall)
Admission; Free (grounds), Y500 (Treasure Hall), Y300 (Eastern Golden Hall)

Kofukuji used to be the family temple of the Fujiwara, the most powerful family clan during much of the Nara and Heian Periods. The temple was established in Nara at the same time as the capital in 710. At the height of Fujiwara power, the temple consisted of over 150 buildings. Today a couple of buildings of great historic value remain, including a five story pagoda and a three story pagoda. At 50 meters, the five story pagoda is Japan's second tallest, just seven meters shorter than the five story pagoda at Kyoto's Toji Temple. Kofukuji's pagoda is both a landmark and symbol of Nara. It was first built in 730, and was most recently rebuilt in 1426.

Nara Park

Nara Park (Nara Koen) was established in 1880 and is home to hundreds of freely roaming deer. Considered in Shinto to be messengers of the gods, Nara's nearly 1200 deer have become a symbol of the city and have been designated a natural treasure. Like the deer on Miyajima, Nara's deer are surprisingly tame, although they can be rather aggressive if they think you will feed them. Deer crackers are for sale around the park, and some deer have learned to bow to visitors asking to be fed. We walked through the park, past the Museum towards Nandaimon Gate, Mum enjoyed the deer but they were interested enough in her plastic bag with lunch inside that we didn't even need to bother buying deer crackers.

Nandaimon Gate

Technically this is part of Todaiji Temple (about 200m south of the temple enclosure) but it is so impressive that I have decided to give it it's own section. The present Nandaimon Gate was rebuilt in 1199 and stands at an impressive 25 metres.

This huge wooden gate is watched over by two fierce looking statues that are about 8 metres high each. These were carved in the 13th century by the sculptor Unkei, are some of the finest wooden statues in all of Japan, if not the world. Representing the Nio Guardian Kings, are are designated national treasures together with Nandaimon gate. The Nio's fierce and threatening appearance is said to ward off evil spirits and keep the temple grounds free of demons and thieves and act as a pair of protectors who commonly stand guard outside the temple gate at Japanese Buddhist temples, one on either side of the entrance. In Japan, the gate itself is often called the Nio-mon 仁王門 (literally Nio Gate). At Shinto shrines, however, the Nio guardians are replaced with a pair of koma-inu (shisha lion-dogs) or with two foxes. These mythical and magical shrine guardians are commonly (but not always) depicted with similar iconography -- one with mouth open, the other closed. Each is named after a particular cosmic sound. The open-mouth figure is called “Agyō,” who is uttering the sound “ah,” meaning birth. His close-mouth partner is called “Ungyō,” who sounds “un” or “om,” meaning death. If you look at their mouths, you will notice that one has its mouth open and the other has its mouth closed, said to represent life and death, the beginning and the end. I found this particularly interesting so won't bore you any further, but to read more about this click here

 

Todaiji Temple
Hours: 7:30 to 17:30 in summer (slightly shorter in other seasons)
Admission: Y500

Todaiji, literally the "Great Eastern Temple" is one of Japan's most famous and historically significant temples and a landmark of Nara.Todaiji was constructed in 752 as the head temple of all provincial Buddhist temples of Japan and grew so powerful that the capital was moved from Nara to Nagaoka in 784 in order to lower the temple's influence on government affairs. Not only is Todaiji housing Japan's largest bronze Buddha statue (Daibutsu), but it is also the world's largest wooden building, even though the present reconstruction of 1692 is only two thirds of the original temple's size. A popular attraction of Todaiji is a pillar inside the temple which has a hole in its base the same size as the Daibutsu's nostril. It is said that those who can squeeze through this opening will be granted enlightenment in their next reincarnation - its meant most for children, or petite adults (although Stuart fit through when he visited in October) but Mum and I didn't bother trying ;P

Nigatsu-do
Technically considered a "sub-complex" of Todai-ji, the Nigatsudo hall offers nice views of the city from its balcony. Nigatsudo literally means "second month hall", referring to the second month of the lunar calendar (roughly corresponding to March of the solar calendar) when the Omizutori festival is held. The spectacular Omizutori ceremonies are held annually March 1 through 14 so this is a great time to plan your day trip to Nara. This collection of Buddhist repentance rituals has been held every year for over 1250 years, making it the one of the oldest reoccurring Buddhist events in Japan. In the night from March 12 to March 13 between around 1:30am and 2:30am, priests descend repeatedly from the Nigatsudo by torchlight to draw water from a well at the base of the temple hall. The well's water is said to flow only once a year, and to have restorative powers. It is this event that is actually named Omizutori ("water drawing"). Yet the entire two-week event has become popularly known under its name. Among the many different events held during Omizutori, Otaimatsu is the most famous and spectacular. Just after sunset on every night from March 1 through 14, giant torches, ranging in length from six to eight meters, are carried up to Nigatsudo's balcony and held over the crowd. The burning embers, that shower down from the balcony, are thought to bestow the onlookers with a safe year. The size of the torches and the duration of Otaimatsu vary from day to day. On most days, ten medium sized torches are brought up to and carried across the balcony one after the other, and the entire event lasts about twenty minutes, while the audience stands in the courtyard below the wooden temple hall.For more information click here. Unfortunately we were visiting in late May but still enjoyed the nice views of the city from the balcony.

Wakakusa-yama
Hours: 9:00 to 17:00
Closed: June 22 to September 11, November 24 to March 19
Admission: Y150

The view from the top of the 350 metre Mount Wakakusa (a grass covered mountain behind Nara Park) has unobstructed views over the city however you are only allowed to climb it in spring and fall to protect the native grasses that grow on the mountain. However, strolling along the base of it is really nice with some cute souvenir shops and of course free-roaming deer so it makes for a really nice walk from Nigatsu-do to Kasuga-taisha.

Kasuga-taisha
Hours: 6:30 to 17:30 (slightly shorter in winter)
Admission: Free (outer area), Y500 (inner area)

Kasuga Taisha is Nara's most celebrated shrine. It was established at the same time as the capital and is dedicated to the deity responsible for the protection of the city. Kasuga Taisha was also the tutelary shrine of the Fujiwara (Japan's most powerful family clan during most of the Nara and Heian Periods). Like the Ise Shrines, Kasuga Taisha had been periodically torn down and rebuilt every 20 years for many centuries. In the case of Kasuga Taisha, however, that Shinto custom was discontinued at the end of the Edo Period. Beyond the shrine's offering hall, which can be visited free of charge, there is a paid inner area which provides a closer view of the shrine's inner buildings. Furthest in is the main sanctuary, containing many small shrines that display the distinctive Kasuga style of shrine architecture, characterized by a sloping roof extending over the front of the building. The main sanctuary may be viewed from the outside, but not entered. Kasuga Taisha is famous for its lanterns, which have been donated by worshipers. Hundreds of bronze lanterns can be found hanging from the buildings, while as many stone lanterns line the approaches to the shrine. The lanterns are lit twice a year for the Lantern Festivals in early February and mid August.

There are many other places to in Nara that we didn't visit. Near to the park you can find the Isuien and Yoshikien Gardens as well as the merchant area of Naramachi. Horyuji, Yakushiji and Toshodaiji Temples as well as Heijo Palace lie to the West of the central city and can be reached easily using JR or Kintetsu trains. For most people a day trip to Nara is enough but you may want to spend a night or do two day trips if you want to see absolutely everything. Nara is only about a half an hour train ride from Osaka and Kyoto so it is easily accessible, definitely worth a visit for the history and also the deer ^^;