Blogs from Hyogo, Japan, Asia

2023_Blog 23_Japan April 12 Port of Call: Kobe, Japan – Weather: Overcast with rain in the morning – clear & sunny in afternoon – Wind: 18 mph. Kobe, our second stop for this cruise and once again we were unable to secure a shore excursion, so we opted to do some exploring of the harbor area on our own. After the rain eased off in the afternoon, we ventured out to find the Kobe Maritime Museum. Google Maps provided us with walking directions and off we went for a thirty-minute hike. The museum and the adjoining Meriken Park dedicated to earthquake victims are located on a spit of land that was reclaimed after the 1995 earthquake. Part of the memorial includes a section of the former seawall showing the level of damage inflicted by the earthquake. ... read more

Himeji Castle is recognized as Japan's most magnificent castle, particularly after its recent five-year renovation, and certainly deserves its moniker White Heron Castle. Built in 1580 by general Toyotomi Hideyoshi, it was never destroyed by war, earthquake or fire and survives to this day as one of the country's twelve original castles. There's a five-story main keep and three smaller keeps, all surrounded by moats and defensive walls. Himeji Castle may be familiar to visitors because of its being featured in films such as Kurosawa Akira's Seven Samurai (1954) , James Bond film You Only Live Twice (1967) and Ran (1985). You should begin your tour of Himeji Castle exploring the surviving royal residential building with an enclosed corridor and multiple unfurnished rooms, which provides a completely different experience than the main building. Visiting the main ... read more

. Last night we joined Mitchie and Shingo for dinner and a concert. The performers were two highly skilled and fantastic performers who played shamisen. Yes they wore the kimono in their poster for the first half of their two hour concert I enjoyed it so much I thought I’d give you access to them if you’re interested.The blog can’t host the video, but these links should help from u tube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tXE-qTbYvFI&feature https://youtu.be/RcqO0zkyQRo... read more

Thursday, 27th June 2019 It was raining in the morning as I made my way to the city of Kobe. The train ride to JR Kobe Station from Himeji took about an hour and very soon I was making my way out of the station towards the direction of Kobe Harborland. This is where Kobe meets the ocean and where the children's amusement park is located. On the right side of the harborland lies the Meriken Park, home to the "BE KOBE" sign as well as one of the most beautiful Starbucks by the sea. The views of the Kobe Port Tower and the iconic Oriental Hotel is unparallel from the Meriken Park. After a pasta lunch in the city centre, I made my way to the UCC Coffee Museum which was reachable after a short ... read more

Kobe was a safe haven for Jews fleeing Europe in 1940 and 1941. Jews started coming to Japan in the 1860s, when Japan was opened to trade. There quickly became a small population of Jewish businessmen in Kobe, along with the other port cities of Yokohama and Nagasaki. By the early 1900s there existed a Zionist organization and well established Jewish community in Kobe, and its first synagogue, Ohel Shelemo, was constructed in 1912. When trade with Russia declined in Nagasaki prior to the Russo-Japanese War and the great Kanto earthquake struck Yokohama in 1923, the majority of the Jewish population in Japan ended up in Kobe. As the Jews fled Europe and settled in Kobe, there was a well-off Jewish community of about 1000 people and 50 families. The community was composed primarily of Sephardim ... read more