Kobe-Osaka Special Report

by David Kudo


Kobe is the place I was born but I have never even been there one time. Romantic, modern, foreign-influenced, port city, the Land of Sake: it is the Kobe of those images that I could finally visit. Because many foreigners either reside in or visit the city, it is modern, has a bright atmosphere, and has a sense of space that is somehow similar to LA. For a city in Japan, there isn’t much billboard advertising. It is a clean city. Here and there the destruction from the earthquake twelve years ago remains, but almost everything has been rebuilt. It is in stark contrast to busy Osaka, where I have visited a number of times and where there are crowds of people thronging the city. Let’s take a trip together to these two cities, Kobe and Osaka.

10-28-07
LA - SF – KIX At the invitation of United Airlines, I got on the airplane and found that my seat was next to the emergency exit, so I stretched out my legs and leisurely dreamed of Kobe-Osaka. The plan is for an 11-hour flight.

10-29-07
After leaving Kansai Airport, within a minute I got on a high-speed boat. The 29-minute trip was quite comfortable, and the night view from the boat was just as good as one might get in San Francisco. We arrived at the Port of Kobe on the other side of the bay and I took a 10-minute taxi ride to the hotel, The Kobe New Otani Hotel. I set down my luggage and took a five-minute walk to the restaurant, “Kobe Oi Beef,” which happens to have a history of being the first beef restaurant to open in Japan, and the taste is also first-rate. This evening I enjoyed sukiyaki to my heart’s content, and from tomorrow I’ll energetically go and do some research.

10-30-07
I woke up at four in the morning and took a walk; at six o’clock I had a Japanese breakfast - something I had not done in a long time - and it was delicious. At nine o’clock I left on a bus tour to first visit the world’s longest suspension bridge, the Akashi-Kaikyo Bridge. Naturally, its size is reminiscent of San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge. And within the bridge, there is a tour and one can study its history. I was told that although it is located right over the epicenter of the Kobe Earthquake, the damage was not so great. At the next stop, Suma Aqualife Park, there wasn’t much time, but I saw the dolphin show, and in one corner of the park was a bronze statue of a northern fur seal sent from Seattle as a symbol of friendship.
Later I embarked on a short cruise. The Chinese lunch was so delicious I went back for more again and again, which made me feel guilty – until I learned everyone else was doing the same thing. We could immediately see the Akashi-Kaikyo Bridge ahead. I wished the boat could cruise right under the bridge.
The hour we spent enjoying Kobe beer to the fullest while listening to someone play the piano was sheer bliss that felt like an instant, and I left with a feeling great reluctance to part. The next stop was Nankinmachi, the finest Chinatown in the world, where at one shop, which sold the specialty product manju (a bun with a bean-jam filling), there were more than 50 people spilling out into the street as they waited to buy the delicacy.
Motomachi Street is colorful like Ginza, but it is nice that it isn’t very crowded and it’s possible to leisurely enjoy a stroll. I then Returned to the hotel and went to the Kobe-Osaka Seminar, where I listened closely to what people were saying about the local priorities. After that, a “welcome reception” for people affiliated with Kobe and Osaka was held, and where business cards were exchanged. There was an impassioned performance of taiko that the U.S. Consul-General also joined, which resulted in a scramble to take pictures.
10-31-07
At the Kikumasamune Sake Brewery Tour and Tasting, I drank three varieties of sake. All were delicious, so I bought them all and had them sent to Tokyo. Shopping was quite enjoyable. The tofu kaiseki lunch I had at the new “sake building” next to the brewery was fabulous - as was the sake.
Following that, we next went to a place 30 minutes away by bus, Nissin Instant Ramen, started by Momofuku. The original building has now been restored as a museum. Those who wish to do so can make their own ramen and can take their creations home. Participants work together as they repeatedly knead the dough; and, particularly for children, it is probably a good experience to participate and try to make noodles themselves.
Kobe University is Japan’s most successful university for industry-government partnerships. Kobe University Beef, Kobe Potatoes, and Kobe Beer are a few examples.
The University is also planning to acquire 100 acres of farmland in the suburbs of Kobe sometime in the future. From the university, a million dollar, wonderful night view can be seen; and the university is open to the public – not just university students – so the Kobe University campus is a top dating destination.
Even after drinking the three kinds of sake, I enjoyed a bath at Arima Hot Springs, where the murmur of a little stream was a sure invitation to relax. There is even a Karaoke bar and it is a good atmosphere for bringing a family.
Well, let’s go to Kobe everyone…
In the next issue we’ll visit Osaka.











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