11/6 - Arima Onsen to Kobe to Himeji

We knew today would be the day that we'd be in transit a lot.  First, we had to get from Arima Onsen to Kobe.  We were lead to believe that the bus would accept our Kansai Thru Pass.  However, after the somewhat twisty ride down the mountain and a long journey through a tunnel to the seaside metropolis, we found out from the driver that our cards wouldn't work.  We had to fork out about ¥2400 out of our own pockets.  Thank goodness Japanese buses give change!

After leaving the bus, we had to walk a while to find the correct train station. We were in the Sannomiya area of Kobe which is the central train hub for the city.  However, there are like 3 or 4 different Sannomiya stations, so we had to figure out where the Hanshin Railway station was.  When we finally found it, we unloaded our extra bags into a coin locker for the day.  That way, we didn't have to lug around too much stuff while we visited Himeji for the afternoon. 


We entered the Hanshin Sannomiya station and boarded an express train to Himeji.  Himeji is 60km west of Kobe and a one-hour journey by train. So we were very happy that we caught the express instead of the milk run that would stop at every single stop between Kobe and Himeji.  The Seaside Express was a wonderful ride.  It didn't really start that way because we were underground at first, then the train passes through the outer suburbs of Kobe.  However, once you get out of the burbs, the sky opens up and the sea is in full view to the left of the train.  It was a beautiful and clear day.  The rays of sunshine glistened off the waves and whitecaps of the ocean.  I think N may have missed most of it as she nodded off beside me.  Even the couple across from us were pretty sleepy.  For whatever reason, I didn't take my camera out at that moment, but just took in the whole view.

We passed the very imposing Akashi-Kaikyo Bridge that connects the main Honshu island to the much smaller Awaji Island.  For those who are into bridges, I'm sure that they would want to make a pilgrimage to this bridge that spans a pretty wide strait.  I didn't get a picture of the bridge on the way to Himeji, but I did get this shot on the way back.

After an hour, we arrived in Himeji.  I also eventually caught a little bit of shut eye along with N.  We exited the Sanyo Himeji Station and walked up the main road to Himeji to our destination - Himeji Castle.