Better late than never. Thanks to Kimberly's last minute talk on Kobe, we have some info we can share about this city. It is the 6th largest city in Japan and has a population of 5.5 million folks that speak Japanese. Located 403 nautical miles from Tokyo, the history here goes back beyond centuries. A modern city today, it was hit by an earthquake back in 1995, causing much damage and loss of life. Both of us being born and raised in San Francisco, we know first hand of such earthquakes. The one in 1989 brings back terrible memories of such devastation. And you never know when or where they are going to occur. And yet we still choose to stay …..
There are a myriad of things to do and see in Kobe, and one of those recommended by Kimberly was to taste their Kobe beef. It is particularly tender and moist due to the high fat content. World famous, the beef is quite expensive with a restaurant meal costing from $75 to $250 per person. Besides hundreds of restaurants, there are museums, a waterfall, a funicular to Mt. Rokko, and an herb and botanical gardens to explore. Ship excursions included a trip to see castles, shrines, temples, and gardens in Kyoto, Osaka, or Nara Park. They ran from $120 to $270, the more expensive ones included a lunch and/or a bullet train ride. Kimberly did give some details on how to catch the local transit as well to do it on your own.
We decided to take advantage of the complimentary shuttle to central Kobe where we had access to shopping, exploring, and dining. Once off of the ship and into the three story terminal, we found our way to the shuttle stop. It was on the second floor, and not accessed from the street level. Looking outside the spacious terminal, we noticed there were overhead highways criss-crossing everywhere and navigating our way out into town might have been difficult. By the way, we passed a group of official-looking Japanese locals coming onboard with a bouquet of flowers and possibly a plaque as a gift for the Zuiderdam's inaugural visit here. We should hear about the ceremony when Captain Frank talks at the sail away tomorrow.
It was a big help to find the Kobe Tartan shirt-wearin docents who were giving folks directions in English. There were plenty of maps too, even though most all of the printing was in Japanese. The bus took us to the Kobe Daimaru Department Store for the drop-off. Directly across the street, we saw the opening to the Motomachi Shopping Street, a domed almost 1 mile arcade filled with all types of shops and restaurants. It was fun just window-shopping since we did not need anything in particular. It started to get more crowded by 11:30am, and then we remembered it was Saturday, and many locals would be out and about. Most all of the cafes, tea houses, and restaurants were small. When they filled up with customers, people would wait outside until seats were available.
Once at the far end, we were going to continue walking, but had no idea which way to go. The streets and alleyways were not laid out in a simple grid, so getting lost was possible. So it was best to head back the way we came, and pass through China Town which was close by. What a surprise we had there. Everybody and their brother was jammed in this small venue where dozens of small eateries were cooking and serving every type of Chinese food you might imagine. Sure smelled and looked good as lines were forming around the alleyways for the folks buying the street food. If there was a restaurant, then the locals lined up outside a dozen deep waiting for a space inside to eat. It was all we could do to make our way to the entrance. If we had been here on a weekday, we doubt there would have been such a crowd.
Since it was already close to 2pm, we went back to the bus stop and rode the shuttle back. And we spent the rest of the afternoon kicking back. Did we mention how cold it was today? There were enough clouds floating by to keep the temperature in the 40's. We were lucky there was no wind, and even with our arctic coats, it was still cold. The ship was nice and toasty.
At 7pm, there was a fireworks display, but it occurred on the opposite side of the ship from our room. By the time we remembered, it was over. We did hear the sound of the fireworks exploding from our veranda. Did we mention that the side panel on the veranda blew open again last night making one heck of a racket. Woke both of us up several times, but we did not know where the noise was coming from at first. We suppose our room steward had not locked it tight enough or it broke. So this morning, we had a visit from the fix-it man who repaired both panels. Now they are solid and will not rattle or pop open like they have been doing.
Now the mystery of the day was the theme for dinner tonight…….a Biergarten. Isn't that like Octoberfest where we come from? And usually held in the fall? It was slated for tonight's Lido dinner where they promised German-style beer (for sale) and great food, music and a festive atmosphere. In the dining room, we were given the same German menu and also had the music. And we were not alone in wondering why this was happening on a port night in a Japanese city, and why wasn't it done on a sea day? Our waiters had no idea why. With no live entertainment this evening (there was a movie Bullet Train), most folks ate dinner and headed off to bed since some were on tours early tomorrow morning.
Our dinner was good with some different items such as a dumpling soup and a plate of German latkes and sour cream. Two salads were followed by one Weiner schnitzel and a bowl of mac and cheese made with spaetzle pasta and Gouda cheese covered with frizzled onions. For a change, it was nice. Dessert was bee sting cake and a bit of vanilla ice cream. Not sure that was German, but the cake was quite good with a custard filling.
Tomorrow we shall head in a different direction to see what else we can find in Kobe.
Bill & Mary Ann
