St. Patrick's Day Kobe Kohl Style

Being St. Patrick's Day, we stopped by an Irish looking pub nearby - Maggie's by Shenanigan :-) Unfortunately, the menu had nothing very Irish looking on it (certainly no "Jiggs Dinner" with corned beef,) and since we didn't want a beer, we just took the photo op.
We decided to go for Cabbage in our favorite Japanese style - OKONOMIYAKI!! These are the cabbage pizza/pancakes with meat, fish or whatever toppings you want. That's literally the translation of name of the dish "grilled whatever you like." We chose the "Mixed Modern Yaki" with cabbage, noodles, pork, shrimp & squid. Delicious!
Walking home, we went through Kobe's small China Town and each had "Goma Dango" for dessert. These are sweet, sticky rice balls (mochi) with red bean paste inside & coated with sesame seeds. We like these so much we joke that we could become Goma Dango!
Lastly, the night view of Kobe's Harbor. Prominent in the picture are Kobe Tower, the Hotel Okura (where we stayed the first month when we moved here & where many stay when they come from Lilly for business) and the Oriental Hotel. It was a crisp, cold night, but nice to walk around.

Business Trip to the "Big T"

We live outside Osaka, which is Japan's second largerst city. Although Lilly's main headquarters in Japan is in Kobe, much of Japan's business takes place in Tokyo and travel there is pretty much inevitable. Jonathan goes up a few times a month - either via a 3 hour Shinkansen (Bullet Train) ride, or sometimes via a 1 hour flight. Since the ride is smooth, Jonathan likes to make the most of the train ride to get some work done on his computer. They ask you to refrain from using cell phones, out of courtesy to keep a quiet atmosphere for all the passengers, but it's usually good computer time.
So we don't have to be apart, Jonathan is usually able to fenagle going up-and-back in the course of a long day. However, sometimes his meetings are scheduled too late in the evening & he can't make the last train or flight home. On these occasions, Kendra is sometimes able to join him and do some exploring or visiting old friends while Jonathan works. Among others, several of Kendra's Japanese friends from her days at Honda in Ohio have now moved back to Japan and are living in the Tokyo area. This weekend in March, Kendra joined Jonathan & we were able to go to the Outback restaurant, outside of Tokyo. This is a treat, as there's not one in Kobe. We didn't get steak (it's actually Australian beef, which just "tastes different,") but shared are favorite, "Alice Spring's Chicken." Interestingly, we felt a little odd sharing one meal, as in the States sometimes we feel like we're "cheating" our server out of a better tip by sharing. However, since Japan is generally not a "tipping" country, they tend to find U.S. sized portions as "way too big," & "doggie bags" are not usually encouraged here...no one seemed to think our meal odd at all.
In the morning, we hit a chain that became a favoirite while we lived in the D.C. area - Dean & Deluca. They also, are only in the Tokyo area & have a bakery with German-style soft pretzels & pretzel-croissants. We had a nice, relaxing morning before Jonathan had to head to his symposium and Kendra to meet her friend.
On the way home, we had the most interesting weather. As you may know, Japan is about as long as California. However, between Tokyo & Kobe, we stay pretty centrally located on Japan's main island. Usually, the weather is fairly consistent on the Pacific Ocean side (our side) between the two places. However, on this day, when we left the Tokyo area it was raining. Then, just before the area of Mt. Fuji, the weather cleared. We were able to see & capture this spectacular view from the train as it sped along. (Just the day before, the weather was mostly clear, however when we reached this same spot, Mt. Fuji was covered from view by a giant cloud. Jonathan maybe gets to see Mt. Fuji half the times he travels by it. Kendra has only seen it probably 4 ot 5 times this clearly.) Then, north of Kyoto, it was actually snowing! Less than 30 minutes south of there, when we arrived home in Kobe, it was cloudy but no precipitation. When we arrive back in Kobe, we are always SUPER THANKFUL to be living here, as it feels like "home" and is much less intense/busy than Tokyo.

Welcome to our neighborhood!

This is our corner, known by taxi drivers as "the three pine trees." When we leave home, this is usually the way we head - downhill. Jonathan walks about 20 minutes to work in the main "downtown" area of Kobe called "Sannomiya." Kendra usually heads this way to go shopping, run errands or to catch one of the train lines to visit someone. Those of you who (will) visit, know that we do a ton of walking here. For the most part, we really enjoy it, as it's healthy and a good chance to unwind or just process the day. In our neighborhood, it's usually simpler to walk than to hassle with driving & finding a parking spot. Parking spots are hard to come by. When you do come by them... they tend to be expensive and VERY narrow.
This is a street in our neighborhood. It isn't marked "one way," however it is narrower than most driveways I recall in the States. Jonathan found himself on this road once in the CAR, only to realize how futile it was to continue down this path. He backed his way out onto a wider road & found a different way to get where he wanted!
Speaking of narrow streets & parking spots...this is one of the funniest things to see when we come home in the evening. Now, HOW in the world does this person manage to get his car into the garage??? We might have to "camp out" here to figure out this puzzle one of these days!
One Saturday (actually Girls' Day, March 3rd), we were walking around & saw several ladies dressed like this, in full kimono. It's always an interesting, strange experience to see modern & traditional Japan coming together in the here & now!
When you come visit, we'd love to welcome you to your room with fresh flowers from our local flower shop. It's a great place and the shopkeeper is a very kind, talented woman. Each time I go to her, she inquires about the recipients of the flowers - nationality, approximate age, their relation to us (family, co-worker, etc.) I just let her go from there....she selects & arranges the flowers with care and then delivers them to our door.
If you're not planning on visiting in the near future, you may receive a letter or package from us sooner than you'll see the guest room flowers. You might be interested in this important neighborhood landmark is our Post Office. They do a great job getting our mail to you and to us, usually in about a week's time.

Here we are. We've talked about it. We've wanted to do it for a long time now. And finally....here it is. The long awaited Kohl blog - "Kohleidoscope". We look forward to communicating with you from Japan! Yokoso! (Welcome!)