Kawagoe (川越) is a city in Saitama Prefecture located about 30 minutes by train from Ikebukuro, which makes it a perfect day trip from Tokyo. Our first destination once we arrived in Kawagoe was Kita-in, a renowned temple built around 1200 years ago. At the entrance of the temple, we were pleasantly greeted with some red maple leaves, the well-known symbol of autumn.
After walking around for a while, we entered the buildings of the former Edo Castle, the only remaining palace buildings which have survived the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923 and World War II. Taking photo was not allowed inside the building unfortunately, but we got to see the room which the Shogun was born as well as his dressing room and toilet. From the back of the building, we could have a nice view of the Japanese garden and enjoy some more autumn leaves.
Our next spot was Hikawa Shrine which was just a few minutes from Kita-in by bus. On the day of our visit, many parents and children dressed up nicely in kimono were there for “Shichi Go San”, a traditional ceremony to celebrate children of age three, five, and seven. Also, there was a wedding ceremony going on when we were there, so we considered ourselves really lucky to have a chance to observe both ceremonies at the same place and same time.
After Hikawa Shrine, we moved on to Kawagoe’s Warehouse District, had lunch and strolled around to take in the historic atmosphere. Definitely, we did not forget to try some local specialties such as sweets made from purple potato, Kawagoe’s beer, takoyaki senbei, and miso bread!
On the way back to the train station, we happened to notice that some kind of festival was going on so we decided to step in and have a look. Interestingly, we were told that it was a “Kitsune Matsuri” or literally “Fox Festival” which was held for the first time. There were lots of people wearing costumes and fox’s masks and some even had fox’s tails! It was such a fun and impressive way to finish our trip.
By Kate P.
Kate is an avid traveler in Japan who can’t wait to expand her journey in Japan and share her amazing experiences with everyone. ^_^
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