Spring in Tokyo (Part 3): Kawagoe - A Glimpse of "Old Edo" (and My Superhero Stint)

- March 27, 2024, Wednesday.

- A sunny Wednesday greeted me and it was the perfect day to go out of Tokyo to explore a bit more of Japan. I decided to visit Kawagoe since it was recommended to be a couple of times by different people. Kawagoe, also called "Ko-Edo" ("Little Tokyo", "Edo" being an old name of Tokyo) because it is a well-preserved historical city. Kawagoe is actually located in Saitama, which is a prefecture north of Tokyo.

- Getting to Kawagoe can be quite an adventure. Depending on where you are you may need several transfers to get to Kawagoe. In my case, I had to ride the train to Nerima Station, then ride the train to Tokorozawa Station, then from Tokorozawa to Honkawagoe Station. The most important thing is to ride the train all the way to Honkawagoe Station, in contrast to Kawagoe Station. Honkawagoe Station is the closest to the city center where all the historical and tourist stuff are, so it's best to ride the train to Honkawagoe Station. From Tokyo, the total journal would be around 1.5 hours more or less.

- Kawagoe's city center was generally walkable, and thankfully it was a sunny day so walking was quite easy. The only thing I had to deal with was the wind (mostly because I was wearing a kimono and I only had my undies underneath my kimono, so I had to make sure my kimono was always in place). I first made my way to Kita-in Temple. Built in 830AD as a Buddhist Temple, it later grew after some parts of the original Edo Castle were moved to Kita-in in the 1600s. There is a special room where visitors can see parts of the old Edo Castle, but unfortunately photography isn't allowed in that area.

We weren't allowed to take photos from inside the Edo buildings, but we were allowed to take photos of the sakura outside the buildings.

This main hall was also part of the Edo Castle.

Temple's pagoda.

- My favorite part of the temple was the 500 Rakan (Gohyaku Rakan) area, where the 540 disciples of Buddha were carved and displayed. Each statue is unique, and the have a lot of personality too. Honestly the Gohyaku Rakan was the part I was most excited about, because I just found the individual statues intriguing.

Find me!

This was a rather unusual one as this arhat was reclining.

The main Buddhas in the middle.

- A few blocks north of the temple is the Honmaru Goten (Inner Palace) of the Kawagoe Castle. Built in 1457, it was a strategic castle because Kawagoe was a trade city. The structure today is but a small part of the original, before many parts of the castle were abandoned and demolished in the 1870s due to the Meiji Restoration. 

Honmaru Goten facade.

One of the halls inside the palace.

- After visiting the castle I walked all the way to Kashiya Yoocho, which is Kawagoe's "Candy Alley". People can literally buy all sorts of traditional sweets and treats in that alley. One special pastry is called "fugashi". It's a big and long airy pastry - not sure if bread or cracker - that is lightly coated in sugar. I bought one with a sweet potato flavor, as sweet potato treats appear to be popular in that area.

Kahiya Yokocho.

Fugashi. This was around 3-feet long!

- The highlight of Kawagoe is the Warehouse District (Kurazukuri Street), where many old Japanese warehouses are preserved and now turned into shops and restaurants. The most prominent of these structures is the bell tower (Toki no Kane), built in 1894. Taking photos with the buildings is quite difficult as the streets and sidewalks are too narrow, and many cars pass by the streets.

Toki No Kane.

The street was so crowded, this was the good-enough shot I was able to take.

One old building was turned into an Edo-style Starbucks!

More old houses from the Warehouse District.

Now this really makes me feel like I went back in time!

More former warehouses.

- A bit south from Kurazukuri Street is called Taisho-Roman Street, which is a little bit more modern as these buildings were built in the 1920s. They still feel historical though!

Taisho-Roman Street.

 keep seeing these giant seafood crackers. This one is made with baby octopus.

I don't think I'll eat this again. It wasn't bad but they press the seafood so flat you barely get to taste the seafood anymore haha.

- I walked back to the train station and went back to Tokyo after my adventures in Kawagoe. It would have been nice to stay longer if not for the harsh winds that day. At least I was able to see majority of what I had to see in Kawagoe. 

- After arriving in Tokyo, and resting for a bit after a really long trip, I decided to go back to Tokyo Tower. Shiba Park was definitely dry this time because it didn't rain the whole day, so I was able to do my golden-hour to early-evening superhero shoot! - You be the judge of my crazy antics. 

The wind was my friend, look at my "hair"!

Manga cover or what.

There was a playground there.

Trying to catch that twilight glow.

- I honestly thought it was just a nice opportunity to revive my male Sailor Moon costume since I debuted it in Osaka last year. Sailor Moon was actually set in Tokyo, so what better backdrop than the Tokyo Tower. 

- Wednesday was a really nice day for me because of the pleasant weather and the chance to see another part of Japan outside Tokyo. Despite the long train trip I didn't feel too tired, and I was able to explore so much in a day. I like how Japan is so good at maintaining historical sites, such as the streets of Kawagoe. I had a few days left to explore Tokyo, and I had few more things left to see!  

** Please check out my other blogs in this series:

Part 1: Shinjuku, Shibuya, Super Sentai Restaurant (click here)

Part 2: Imperial Palace, Tokyo Tower, and nearby shrines (click here)

Part 4: Sensoji, Ueno, Ameyoko, Cat Cafe (click here)

Part 5: Odaiba and Gundam, Tsukiji Outer Markets, Tsukiji Honganji, Ginza (click here)