Saitama is the 5th most populous province in Japan, located north of Tokyo and is one of 7 provinces and cities in the Kanto region of Japan. Kawagoe (川越市) is a city in Saitama Prefecture, known as "Little Edo" (小江戸) with many long-standing architectural works, up to thousands of years old, and is only far from central Tokyo. 30 minutes by train.
And today, I will take you on a tour around Kawagoe, and see where we can go in this city in one day!
First, you have to go to Kawagoe Station, and it only takes about 30 minutes from Ikebukuro Station.
Address: https://goo.gl/maps/AvRYyV4R8aPsHku78
- Kawagoe Hachimangu Shrine
Address: https://goo.gl/maps/YhJkhFMSp9SZbTUM7
This is a temple that was built about 1000 years ago, is the most prominent temple, and is the only temple with “Kawagoe” in its name among the more than 200 temples in Kawagoe.
And it only takes about 5 minutes to walk from Kawagoe station to get to the temple, so this will be my first destination on today's journey.
People come to this temple to pray for better relationships, which is very effective for couples in love and married couples.
The entrance to the temple is also beautifully decorated with fences and red lanterns on both sides.
In particular, at this temple there is a shrine called Guchi kiki-sa ma, with a statue of a man raising his hand to his ear, expressing his desire to listen to the other person.
Guchi kiki sama is the image of Prince Shotoku, who listened and helped many suffering people.
Next is the Inari shrine, worshiping the Soul God Kuraine, the god who brings bountiful crops and prosperous business.
Inari Shrine.
2. Kurazukuri no Machinami / Warehouse District
Address: https://goo.gl/maps/xtTpKJGgW4QF4ghx8
Kurazukuri in Japanese means warehouse-style buildings with clay walls, built in the Edo architectural style. This is a street that brings you nostalgic, old scenes of the Edo period (1603-1867).
In the past, Kawagoe was an important trading town that provided resources for Edo (present-day Tokyo). And thanks to their thriving business, Kawagoe merchants showed off their wealth by building beautiful warehouses and shops using fireproof building materials.
This street is about 300-400 meters long, and is filled with shops, food, souvenirs and handicrafts from old to modern styles.
There are also rickshaws here for you to take a tour around the streets here.
A Miffy store on the street that I visited:
The shop sells cakes and super cute kitchen utensils.
Address of Miffy store Kawagoe: https://goo.gl/maps/H2hYkezjuCTsDkNv8
Miffy bread and jam.
There is also Donguri Store here like Kyoto.
Address: https://goo.gl/maps/SZxP1s5DMCjwsfDcA
3. Toki no Kane bell tower.
This bell tower is located right at the beginning of a turn on Kurazukuri street, very easy to spot.
Address: https://goo.gl/maps/hrQjGWVh7wXHUJdz5
This is a tower about 16 meters high, built in the early Edo period (about 400 years ago). This bell tower will ring at 4 times a day: 6 am, 12 noon, 3 pm and 6 pm, and each time frame will ring a different sound.
The tower is located on Kanetsuki-dori Street, a street as busy as Kurazukuri Street, with dozens of restaurants.
At the foot of this bell tower is the Yakushi temple, worshiping the Medicine Buddha (Yakushi Nyorai) - bringing good harvests, happy families, curing diseases, and especially eye diseases. And the Inari shrine on the right side is said to bring success in life, good luck, especially in exams.
One of Kawagoe's extremely famous specialties is sweet potatoes. You can find many shops selling sweet potato-related dishes along Kanetsuki-dori street.
More specifically, here also sells sweet potato ice cream! A dish that probably only Kawagoe has 😀
You must definitely try sweet potato ice cream when you come here!
In addition, on this street, there is a Star Bucks shop "customized" version, very ancient :v
The address for you to easily find: https://goo.gl/maps/UCrx1PwCg7EosKzWA
Remember to try sweet potato StarBucks here 😀
This is my favorite street in Kawagoe, it has both ancient Japanese scenery and many delicious dishes 😀
4. Kashiya Yokocho
Address: https://goo.gl/maps/CXNgY1FGVYD2QPJ27
This is a street selling traditional sweets, just 350 meters from Toki no Kane (about 5-10 minutes walk).
There is a famous type of cake sold here, called "Fugashi", a type of bread up to 85-90cm long and covered with a layer of black sugar, creating a light sweetness for the cake.
Fugashi in Kawagoe is considered Japan's longest bread. People who come here often buy "Fu" as gifts (Omiyage). If you have the opportunity to come here, remember to buy some to try, and buy more for your loved ones!
We can also easily encounter giant statues of animals along the walk to Kashiya Yokocho.
Some lovely pictures I took while walking through here:
Special manhole covers at Kawagoe.
5. Honmaru Goten (Kawagoe Castle)
Address: https://goo.gl/maps/MMUcTCvmQRsV3DhAA
Kawagoe Castle is said to have been built in the first year of Nagaroku (1457), considered an important defense line in northern Edo. And Honmaru Palace is the only remaining building of the former Kawagoe Castle, which also served as the residence and office of the ancient lord. (Source: Japan-guide)
Tickets to visit this palace are only 100 JPY (about 16k VND) for adults. Before entering, you must leave your shoes on the shelf to the left of the door.
The entire interior of the castle is made of wood, and some places have tatami floors.
Inside the room is ancient and outside is a spacious garden.
There are really beautiful angles taken through the window here.
Looks quite like generals discussing strategy.
Honmaru Castle opening hours: 9am - 5pm.
Closing time: Every Monday (If Monday is a holiday, the castle will be closed on Tuesday), 4th friday of the month, and the time of year end, new year (December 4 to January 12).
6. Kawagoe Hikawa Shrine
Address: https://goo.gl/maps/S2qwA6cdN9Pj3UWf8
The entrance to this temple is a 15 meter high Torii gate, one of the tallest wooden Torii gates in Japan.
Kawagoe Hikawa Shrine was built 1500 years ago, and is designated an important cultural property by the prefectural government. In the temple, there are 5 gods worshiping the same family, including 2 couples, blessed by beliefs and connecting family and marriage relationships. (Source: Fun-Japan)
Pinwheel with blue sky.
Here, people can experience "fishing" for fish, and inside is an omikuji (おみくじ) fortune teller.
Kawagoe Hikawa Shrine also has a "tunnel" filled with wooden plaques with people's wishes hanging here.
In the summer (July to September every year), the temple also has a wind chimes festival with thousands of colorful wind chimes hung up.
People will write their wishes on wooden cards, and hang them on wind chimes, and wish for them to come true.
And at the end of the article, here are a few pictures I took of Kimono with the wind chimes at this temple:
Thanks for reading to the end
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