300 
CBUIbE OF H.M.S. CHALLENGEB. 
junks and boats; while stretching out below us lay 
the richly cultivated plain, dotted with white roofs, 
amongst the bright colours of the cornfields and the 
sober olive of the surrounding foliage. 
During our stay we visited Osaka, which is about 
30 miles from Hiogo. There is a railway between the 
two, and trains run frequently during the day. The 
trip is most enjoyable. Nearly the whole way lay 
along slopes and through villages, valleys inter- 
vening between the sea and mountain ranges. An 
hour’s run and Osaka is reached. This is one of the 
five imperial cities, and is most pleasantly situated 
in a fruitful plain near a navigable river, which is 
spanned by upwards of a hundred bridges, many of 
extraordinary beauty of design. 
The streets are, as in all Japanese towns, very 
narrow ; still they are regular, and cut each other at 
right angles. The internal arrangements of the shops 
are simple and uniform, though somewhat modified 
according to the business of the occupants ; still 
there is a great sameness in every town. 
The buildings are not of a very imposing character, 
with the exception of the temples, many of which are 
splendid specimens of art, rich in gold and lacquer 
work ; particularly the one at Tonagee, with its grand 
and stately pagoda, from the top of which a fine 
view is obtained all over the city. 
A week was spent at Kobe, and on the 25th May 
we left for a cruise through the inland sea. 
