Oct. 23 - Kobe ropeway, cruise, and stroll around Nankinmachi

Doing like we had done the day before, we walked into the ticket office at Hankyu Nishinomiya Kitaguchi station, but this time bought the day pass for Kobe. Also a great value, this pass allows travel between Osaka and Kobe, as well as including fare for the Mt. Rokko ropeway and a free cruise in Osaka Bay.

We took the train into Sannomiya and from there went to the JR station to procure Shinkansen tickets for the trip to Tokyo we would be taking on the 25th. After that we took the subway to ShinKobe station to board the ropeway, a series of gondolas which take you up the mountains abruptly jutting up less than a kilometer from the coast. We were lucky enough to have great weather that day, and so were able to get a fantastic panoramic of Kobe and the fertile-crescent megopolis of cities, suburbs and satellite cities that engulf Osaka Bay. Just visible on the horizon was the floating island of Kansai airport, and much nearer the beginnings of another man-made island airstrip being built in the sea near Kobe. Port Island, Rokko Island and several other strips of land also strech out tentacle-like into the Bay. It's land reclaimation taken to an extreme-- a Japanese extreme mind you, but not surprising when you think that only 25% of Japan's natural landmass is suitable for habitation.

At the top of the Mt. Rokko ropeway there's an herb garden overlooked by a Swiss-style chateau. There's no shortage of greenhouses, trails, or tea houses, coffee shops, or souvenir emporiums to keep one occupied. You get the impression, though, that the area is targeted to an older crowd, built as an escape from the glitzy, racous city below. Not a bad way to spend a quiet afternoon if you're in the mood for tranquility, quiet reflection, or just trying to recover from last night's sake binge.

We returned to the subway and then went out to Harborland station in order to catch the Concerto Cruise ship for a trip out into the bay. There are several versions of this cruise. You can upgrade your booking to get a cake set, which we opted to do, or you can book into the much longer, swankier dinner-cruise. On board, we chowed down on cake and guzzled down coffee and tea, and then went above deck to take in the view round the bay. Since we had opted for the shorter cruise we didn't get too close to the Akashi Kaikyou Bridge-- apparently the longest suspension bridge in the world.