Kobe, my home since 1991, changed suddenly on the morning of January 17th, 1995. As you may or may not recall, the city was awoken at 5:46 a.m. by a monster earthquake. By the time the city had stopped shaking and the ensuing fires had died out, close to 7000 people had lost their lives, 80,000 buildings had disappeared, and city's infrastructure was in utter ruins. All rail links into the city were severed, resulting in total chaos on the few usable roads. The rescue efforts were not helped by a cautious and ineffective central government; most of the help came from an army of volunteers who brought themselves to Kobe, many giving up their jobs and living in sub-standard conditions. A huge and largely unrecognized group of saviours.
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Gradually, a semblance of normality returned to Kobe. JR managed to re-open the main Osaka-Kobe line on April 1st, a remarkable achievement given the amount of damage. Construction of new buildings was slow, due the vast number of condemned buildings needing to be pulled down. Now, over 2 years on, too many people are still living in temporary accommodation, vacant plots of land are everywhere, and the roads remain in a very poor state, while money raised by donations sits in bank accounts in Tokyo. On the surface, Kobe is almost back to normal, but look a bit deeper, and you can see that much is still to be done.
Despite all the gloom, though, Kobe remains an upbeat and pleasant place. I never once considered leaving and going somewhere less chaotic, even in the worst period. I think most people are now looking forward to seeing the new Kobe. Looking on the bright side, Kobe is in a unique position, a large city in need of major renovation. I hope the city planners view this as a challenge rather than a burden. They have the power top turn this city into a model for the 21st century. Will they succeed? It's too early to tell.
Anyway, on to more constructive things. A cyber-space guide to the sights and smells of Kobe. Anyone wishing to contribute / correct / take issue with anything, please feel free to drop me a line at mjryoung@hotmail.com. If you'd like to add something to this page, perhaps you'd be kind enough to send it in a form that will require as little editing as possible. Thanks.
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