The 17th Kobe Luminarie

The 17th Kobe Luminarie(神戸ルミナリエ)  is a light festival which started in December 1995 to mourn for the victims of the Great Hanshin Earthquake. The festival is being held at Old Foreign Settlement and Higashi-Yuenchi Park (Chuo Ward) in Kobe City from December 1st to the 12th.

This festival is also taking electricity saving measures such as changing operating hours and using LED bulbs.

The theme of this year's Luminarie is "Light of Hope, Luci di speranza."
Now many poeple enjoy this festival as an annual illumination event.  I saw on TV a high school girl from an affected area in Tohoku was moved to tears watching the illuminations.

There is a detailed information about the festival on The 17th Kobe Luminarie(sorry, Japanese version only) of Feel KOBE's web site.

Feel KOBE is official Kobe tourism site by Kobe Convention & Visitors Association.