Japan Trip (30-12-09) Kobe 神戸

With the tired body and enthusiastic mind , we hit the road again but this time we did it with a friend ,Han Yee. He was kind enough to guide us around and gave us some insights during the whole journey.

KOBE 神戸
Today we went to Kobe 神戸 which is is the sixth-largest city in Japan and is the capital city of Hyōgo Prefecture and a prominent port city in Japan with a population of about 1.5 million. The city is located in the Kansai region of Japan and is part of the Keihanshin (京阪神, Keihanshin) metropolitan area. Kobe is classified as one of Japan's seventeen designated cities.

First up , we went to Mitsui Outlet Park Marine Pia Kobe Porto Bazaar which is at the west side of Kobe city center.

Admission
Open "Shop: 10am-8pm, Restaurant: 11am-10.30pm (Depends on the shop)"
Address 12-2 Kaigan-dori"Tarumi-ku, Kobe-shi"Hyogo
Phone 078-709-4466
Access "From JR Tarumi Station / Sanyo Rainway Sanyo Tarumi Station: 9 mins on foot (shuttle bus services are available on Sat, Sun and holidays)
http://www.31op.com/kobe/index.html

There are lots of outlet shops, approximately 70 stores selling luxury designer brand clothes and other brand items produced by well-known companies in Japan and overseas.This includes Nike,Adidas,Lego,New Balance.

We stopped to try the Okonomiyaki in a chain restaurant called 嵐月 which is a Japanese savoury pancake containing a variety of ingredients. The name is derived from the word okonomi, meaning "what you like" or "what you want", and yaki meaning "grilled" or "cooked" (cf. yakitori and yakisoba). Okonomiyaki is mainly associated with Kansai or Hiroshima areas of Japan, but is widely available throughout the country. Toppings and batters tend to vary according to region.




Okonomiyaki in my plate,Yummy!

After an afternoon of shopping , the rain started to kick in so we decided to go window shopping again in the area.

The next destination is
Harborland
This shopping district was made on the site of the former freight yard, Minatogawa Kamotsu Station of the Japanese National Railways. The yard was removed in 1982 and the shopping district opened in 1992.


There is a very big Ferris wheel beside the sea where you can spot the Kobe Tower and the Kobe Earthquake Memorial Park.

Kobe Earthquake Memorial Park

大きいなFerris wheel

The next destination is
KOBE TOWER

The Kobe Port Tower is a sightseeing tower considered as a landmark of Kobe. It stands in Meriken Park facing the Kobe Port where the Kobe Maritime Museum and a number of hotels can be found. 

With a red pipe structure, it beautiful curves in a shape of a Tsuzumi (traditional Japanese musical instrument) and has received many architectural awards since it was completed in 1963. 





The following destination is
KOBE CHINATOWN
Kobe Chinatown (Nankin-machi "Nanjing town") (Japanese: 南京町; Simplified Chinese: 南京町) is located in Kobe, Japan. There are over 100 restaurants, shops and a Chinese temple (関帝廟).


Kobe's Chinatown developed as the residential area of Chinese merchants, who settled in Kobe after the city's port had been opened to foreign trade in 1868. At that time, Japan didn't have a peace treaty with China, and so it was not permitted to live in this foreign settlement for Chinese people, so they lived in the designated foreigner residential quarter. That was the beginning of Chinatown. Now there are over 10,000 Chinese people living in Kobe, there are few residents in this Chinatown, as it is in the commercial area of Kobe city.

After a day of touring around the city of Kobe , we went to a quick meal restaurant which is near to the train station Motomachi 元町駅.


Food Vending Machine