Kobe, Himeji Castle, (& Okonomiyaki)
It’s quite a long time since we were in Kobe and it took us a while to get our bearings. We were looking for our favourite little Okonomiyaki shop where we used to go 35 years ago, but we couldn’t find the right little alley the first night and had to settle for a lesser alternative. The unique atmosphere of Kobe is still pretty much the same except that there seem to more and bigger and better shopping arcades around Sannomiya station and more miles of underground shopping and dining areas.
We had more luck the next day and walked in the right direction and finally found the little place we were looking for. It was pretty much the same and was being run by the daughter of the old owner that I first met in 1964. He’s still alive and well – now retired - and his daughter is keeping it going in the same old way. It’s a tiny place with seats for 8 diners inside around the hotplate counter plus a few more outside where you can wait when it’s busy. The flavour is still the same but the price has gone up since it was featured on a TV food program a few years ago. We had lunch and went back again for dinner.
We didn’t have any major schedule in Kobe so just had a quiet time. We dropped in to the K.R. & A.C (sports club) where I used to play rugby, but there was nobody there we knew and there was no rugby game on, so we didn’t stay long. It was the opening day of the Autumn Sumo tournament, so I stayed in and watched some Sumo on TV while Yasuko did a bit more shopping.
We had a late (9.20 pm) flight leaving for the trip back to OZ the next day, so we spent our last day visiting Himeji Castle, which is heritage listed and is entirely built of timber with white plaster walls. The plaster is also supposed to act as a fire retardant. The castle dates back to 1609 and was completely dismantled and rebuilt piece by piece during the Meiji period in the 1950’s. It is 6 stories high built on a high stone foundation on the top of a hill and covers a very large area. It was originally surrounded by 3 moats, the outer moat encompassing what is now the main part of Himeji City. We climbed right to the top which gives a great view of the surrounding area including a beautiful Japanese garden next to it.
We visited the garden called KO Ko-en and had some quiet relaxation before the long flight home. We got to the airport in plenty of time for the compulsory body search (artificial hips), which in this case was gently carried out by an attractive young (female) security guard. Life does have some compensations. The (Jetstar) flight (as usual) was about one hour late. But we arrived safely and Rosie & Sylvia picked us up at the airport and drove us home. It's nice to be home again.
