"kobe city by nathasha!!!... " a Kobe Travel Page by nathasha

***welcome to my charming city*** **

kobe - an international port city **

with a population of 1,5 million people, kobe is the 6th biggest city of japan. it is an important port city in japan, asia, and the world. the area of kobe was inhabited already during the 4th century, however kobe as an important port city started to flourish during 8th century (the nara period), and further during the 15th & 16th centuries when trade with china boomed. one of the most famous incidents in kobe`s history is the 12th century battle between the genji and heike clans. in the 14th century, kobe had the honor of being named the country`s capital for a short period :)))

the location **

kobe is located in western honshu, and it`s the capital of hyogo prefecture consisting of nine wards (-ku); tarumi-ku, nishi-ku, kita-ku, suma-ku, nagata-ku, hyogo-ku, chuo-ku, nada-ku, higashinada-ku. The city center is sannomiya, but there are also many sub centers like rokko, sumyoshi, okamoto....the city of kobe also includes the cities of miki, akashi, ashiya, and nishinomiya. kobe enjoys a magnificent setting in the foothills of the Rokko mountains. from here u can enjoy fantastic views all the way to awaji island, osaka, osaka bay, and wakayama, no less!!!

the weather **

temperate climate; spring and autumn being the most lovely time to visit, as anywhere in japan. winters can get chilly, but it is sunny with clear skies, and if u are lucky, it might even snow a flake or two ;)) summer starts with rainy season in june, which in the second half of july turns into a heat wave, sometimes lasting into late september!!! no need for warm coats before december & january (unless u r from saudi arabia;) )

the people **

kobe is an international city with large population of koreans, chinese, americans, indians, vietnamese, brazilians, philippinos, english, and canadians. it is also a city of youth; with 16 universities, it attracts several tens of thousands of students :))

internationally renowned kobe products* **

quality sake (japanese rice wine)
pearls
beef
bread
sweets

i hope u will enjoy ur stay in kobe city!!! & i hope my tips will be useful for u :)) my kobe stuff is constantly under construction, so if u don`t find what u r looking for, please do drop me an email, or come back for more later ;))

***cheers!!!*** *

xmas 2001& new year 2002 was my first time to kansai region, the home of my darling hiroyuki :) i'll never forget the beautiful sunny & chilly day of winter (dec 2001), when i landed to osaka international airport...looked like we are landing on water! my boyfriend was there to pick me up and we drove to kobe, his home city. driving fast on the highway, i felt again having landed on another planet; buildings and highways everywhere different layers, such a multidimensional complexity, the blue ocean glittering aside, big beautiful bridges, blue skies and the earthy mountains beyond the city skylines of osaka and kobe - i felt here starts a new adventure, and there is probably no turning back..?B.!!!

and there wasn`t!!! six months later, i arrived again, this time to stay ;)) been here 1 yr now, and what can i say?!!! still can`t get enough!!! there is so much to see and learn every day....i will do the best to capture it all for u here, time allowing :))

pro`s **

the ocean, the mountains, fresh international ambience

con`s **

feels sometimes like a small city (too small!!) even with its` nearly 2 million inhabitants!!! (might be a pro for u though ;))

in a nut shell **

u will love it!!!