When people think of Kobe and Yokohama, they would probably find many things in common. Although these two cities are located 700 km away, belong to different cultural sphere, both of two cities have big trading port which make similarities. Yokohama port opened in 1859, which is a bit older than Kobe port. Since then two cities have been following the same history. Kobe and Yokohama were the cities to open for trade with the Western countries following the end of policy of seclusion. These two cities had been contributing to the modernization of Japan. Yokohama port was opened in 1859, eight years older than Kobe port. Being trading port cities and foreign settlements, Kobe and Yokohama have been known as cosmopolitan cities. There are Western styles of buildings, China town, and foreign cemeteries in both of the cities. Now Kobe and Yokohama are popular among young people because they have fashionable atmosphere which enable people to feel as if they were in foreign countries. It can be said that these two cities are remarkably similar. However there are big cultural differences between two cities. Yokohama lies in east part of Japan, which is called “Kanto area”. In contrast, Kobe belongs to “Kansai area”. There are big differences between two worlds such as food, language, fashion, and personality. Kobe is a bit larger than Yokohama city. However, when it comes to population, Yokohama is much greater than Kobe, which means Yokohama is densely populated.

Kobe and Yokohama are both big cities, have much more similarities than differences. Located next to capital of Japan: being a commuter town, Yokohama is more populated than Kobe. Located in “Kansai area”, people in Kobe prefer lightly‐flavored food. However Kobe has as much Western atmosphere as Yokohama. That’s why people find these cities very similar.