Kobe

Kobe is a beautiful city, and an amazing example of how fast things can progress. Since the terrible earthquake in 1995, all the the big buildings and the harbour area have been totally rebuilt, giving the city a very new and modern feel. A section of the docks was left in its original state after the earthquake as a reminder of just how severe the damage was.

Up in the hills, there are the old Ijinkan (foreigner's residences) where foreign merchants and entrepreneurs lived when the city was opened to the outside world for trading in 1868. It felt very surreal as a westerner touring "foreigner's residences" along with all the other Japanese toursists in Kobe, and I even found a house named after me! We also went to a museum which showed just how how much the city changed when it was opened up, and how fast Japan industrialised itself.

There is also a thriving cafe scene in Kobe, which we took great advantage of. Chihiro had a few famous ones that she definitely wanted to try out, and we also found another great one by chance. We've been eating health food for a week since we've come back normal life!