After leaving Osaka early and arriving in Kobe, we had a day to experience a mix of history, natural beauty and an urban waterfront.

First stop was the Ikuta Shrine, one of Japan’s oldest, dating back over 1,800yrs.

Nestled in the heart of Kobe it was a peaceful oasis where we had a walk around and watched a few locals celebrating family events.

It was lovely to see these shrines still in use after so many hundreds of years, the orange colouring of the posts was reminiscent of those seen in Kyoto, when we visited Fushimi Inari Taisha, but on a much lesser scale.

On from the shrine, we walked up into the centre to pick up the ropewalk (cable car) to Kobe Nunobiki Herb Garden, located on Mount Rokko.

The ride up the mountain provided us with stunning views of the city and the surrounding bay.

Once at the top, we started to explore the expansive gardens filled with seasonal flowers and herbs. It was impressive to see so many colourful plants so late into October, although we suspect this is helped by the mild weather which today was still 27c.

We managed to find an English rose garden to wander through and we instantly had a feeling of being back in the UK.

One of the other attractions was a perfume museum, where all the key ingredients that make up today’s perfumes were shown, all originating from herbs taken from the garden.

The smells instantly takes you to a place, reminding us both of our youth and our parents perfumes that sat in the bathroom cabinets.

We then started our descent down through the herb gardens and on to the greenhouses where some of the more tropical plants are grown.

The whole herb garden was beautifully presented and like all things in Japan incredibly ordered and pristine.

As we slowly walked down, we kept looking out to see the incredible views down the hillside and out over the city below.

The planting was so clever and helped to showcase the various colourful plants and herbs at their best.

The colours were so vivid and you could almost believe we were looking at an early summer garden, rather than a late October one.

Half way down we stopped at the greenhouses to see the Halloween displays and the tasteful planting that sat amongst the pumpkins and decoration.

We then went for a quick circuit of the larger greenhouse to marvel at the water features and a special sculpture of a mother and daughter with heart shaped flowers growing amongst the greenery above.

When it’s this warm and sunny, an ice cream is definitely called for. Andy went all out with his purchase including a few fancy extras that are loved by the Japanese. We can confirm that it tasted as good as it looked!

After all that walking, it was rest time on one of the hammocks in the herb garden. Michelle was soon fully relaxed and dozing as she looked out over Kobe.

As we ebbed down to the mid-point of the descent, we walked through the last few herb gardens, before boarding the cable car for the last steep descent to the base.

After a very enjoyable few hours at the herb gardens, we then caught the subway down to Kobe Harborland to see the waterfront area. On the way we passed an Elvis memorial with his music playing on lour speakers.

The harbour front was a lively area with the obligatory big wheel, shopping malls, cafes and the iconic Kobe Port Tower.

We took a stroll along the promenade and enjoyed views of the port and the nearby mountains.

After leaving the harbour side, we walked through the pretty city streets some of which were lit and made for a very pleasant European style feel.

For reasons unknown we witnessed a number of couples recently married having their photos taken on the street with all the fairy lights.

There was just enough time to take a stroll along the Motomachi ‘walking street’ an ornate mall with quaint old shops brimming with locals.

Back at the hotel, we managed to check in and were impressed by a well equipped if small room. Certainly we’ve never had so many charging points and a massage chair, as well as free chocolates, for just £40 for the night’s stay.

Early evening we headed for dinner and found a traditional ramen restaurant for a feast of a meal. We had planned to go for Kobe beef, but as neither of us are steak lovers and the average cost was close on £40-50 per head we decided to pass on it.

Instead we enjoyed our beers and ramen soup with pork and veggies.

Tomorrow we are up early for our flight to Nagasaki and a visit to the atomic bomb museum.