Since my business trip was actually in Yokohama, it gave me an opportunity to walk around the city. I paid a visit to the home field of Yokoham DeNA BayStars (a Yokohama professional baseball team) which is the Yokohama Stadium. You can get to this stadium by taking the train to Kannai Station. I was lucky as there was a game on that day and I got to experience what it was like to be at a baseball stadium with so many fans (I didn’t go into stadium, I just walked around the outside of the stadium). The stadium experience was totally different than in Malaysia as I saw many people from different age groups (school children to senior citizens) as well as a lot of ladies. In the football matches in Malaysia, the spectators are usually just the male adults.
Coincidently, Yokohama was also having the 33rd National Urban Greenery Fair Yokohama (Garden Necklace Yokohama 2017). Many flowers especially tulips were planted all over Yokohama for this event.
Just beside Yokohama Stadium is Japan’s Chinatown.
I did try some foods over there however I felt that the Chinese foods in Malaysia tasted much better.
I then walked to Yamashita Park and there was another culture shock for me. There were many people of different groups (families, friends, etc.) at the park just relaxing on the grass or having picnic. This is something that I will never see in Malaysia. It was indeed wonderful watching the parents spending time with their kids in the outdoors.
Just next to Yamashita Park is Osanbashi Pier which is an international passenger pier for cruise ships. This is the oldest pier in Yokohama as it was constructed in the 1890s. The pier has a walkway at the top whereby you can have a perfect view of the Minato Mirai skyline.
Within walking distance from Osanbashi Pier is the Yokohama Red Brick Warehouse. Yokohama Red Brick Warehouse consists of two historical buildings which was built as a warehouse as Japan’s first modern port facility. It now serves as a tourist attraction by having exhibition halls, cafes, restaurants and shops in the buildings.
There was some event at the Red Brick Warehouse on the day I visited.
Yokohama Red Brick Warehouse (横浜赤レンガ倉庫)
Operating hours:
Warehouse 1 - 10.00am to 7.00pm
Warehouse 2 - 11.00am to 8.00pm
For my lunch, I walked to Yoshimuraya which was quite far. The queue was quite long when I reached. It took me about 40 minutes of queuing before I could enter the restaurant. This ramen restaurant gave me quite a hard time as none of the staffs could speak English. There were also limited English words on the vending machine. The chef even asked me something which I couldn’t understand at all but I just nodded my head. Despite having a hard time ordering, the ramen was very very tasty. The chashu (pork belly) was the type that melts in your mouth. You can click here for a more detailed blog post of Yoshimuraya.
Being a hardcore football fan, one must not leave Yokohama without visiting the 2002 FIFA World Cup Finals stadium, International Stadium Yokohama. I took the train to Shin-Yokohama Stadium and walked for 15 minutes to the stadium. The stadium is also known as Nissan Stadium and is the home stadium of Yokohama F. Marinos (a professional football team in Yokohama). The score and the players’ name of the 2002 FIFA World Cup Finals was carved at the front of the stadium.
I then took the train to Nihon-Odori Station and walked to Osanbashi Pier again. The night view of Minato Mirai skyline was certainly breathtaking. It was a little cold taking photos at the pier at night due to the strong winds (it was spring – end of April). It is recommended to bring along a sweater of jacket if you intend to visit the pier at night.
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