I am now back from Japan. As it turns out, I took a lot of photos, so it’s a challenge deciding how to sort them and share them with you.
I’ll start from photos from Kobe’s Port Island and Harborland area. Port Island is a man-made island that is home to their international convention centre, and also the airport. The Harborland is the mainland area right next to the harbour.
At night, the Harborland area is a beautiful sight.
Kobe’s unofficial symbol, Kobe Tower, dominates the area. I liked how this photo turned out at night. My camera takes excellent photos during the day, but the night poses more of a challenge.
The conference which I attended (and will talk more about later in another post) took place at the Kobe International Conference Centre, which is right next to the flagship Portobia Hotel. As you can imagine, it is very expensive, so I didn’t stay there.
And now for a close-up. The Japanese respect the elderly. It looks like this person is out for a stroll, with the help of a younger person. Both are protected from the sun by an umbrella. The one in the chair is also wearing a mask to protect against the flu. I’m just wondering what the guy is doing behind the giant stone sign.
The Harborland is a classy area, but also one where things are close together, like everywhere in Japan. A tennis court is visible in the middle-right amongst the tall buildings and parking garages, all at the edge of the harbour.
The fancy Oriental Hotel sits at the harbour. No, I didn’t stay here either. Kobe Tower is nearby.
There’s lots of activity on Kobe’s waterfront. This is only one small part. The port is very large and seems to stretch forever into Osaka eventually.
There’s a tourist area with gift shops and an amusement park. The palm trees are easily supported by Japan’s very warm weather. I found it a bit too warm and uncomfortable coming out of Canada’s winter.
Video games are big everywhere in Japan. Namco is one of the big companies involved, though their North American presence has dwindled over the years. There’s lots of establishments everywhere filled with gaming machines.