Moji, dissolved municipality in Fukuoka prefecture, Japan
Moji is a former municipality in Fukuoka Prefecture, now part of Kitakyushu after a merger in 1963. The old port area retains several brick and stone buildings from the Meiji and Taisho eras, including a red brick customs building and the historic Mojiko Station.
Moji was established as a trading port in 1889, mainly to ship coal from nearby mines to markets across Japan and abroad. An imperial decree in 1899 granted it open-port status, allowing direct trade with foreign countries and bringing new construction and commerce to the area.
The streets near the old port are lined with brick and stone buildings that reflect the trading connections this place once had with the wider world. A baked curry dish called Yaki Curry was created here and is still served in many restaurants around the harbor today.
The old port area and Mojiko Station are close together and easy to explore on foot without needing transportation. Visiting in the morning gives you a quieter experience before the area fills up later in the day.
The former Mitsui Club building near the port once welcomed Albert Einstein and his wife during their visit to Japan in the 1920s. Mojiko Station is listed as an Important Cultural Property of Japan, making it one of the few train stations in the country to hold that designation.
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