Lynda Hogan is a long term resident of Saitama Prefecture and has been promoting Saitama Prefecture voluntarily for the last 12 years. Lynda is an official Hikijin ambassador representing the seven towns of the Hiki District as well as Higashimatsuyama City and Higashichichibu Village. She has appeared on NHK Cool Japan's Saitama specials. She is also an administrator on the 79,000 member strong Japan Travel Friendly Discussion Group Facebook Group. Formerly she was the Saitama representative of the Association of Foreign Wives of Japan. She is currently a level 9 Google Local Guide, in the top 1% of local guides in all of Japan according to Google. Lynda is a long term contributor to Kyodo News Corporation’s City-cost.com website and more recently writes for Japan Travel, among other travel websites, too. If you would like to work with Lynda, please drop her a line here:
https://insaitama.com/contact-us/
Secret hydrangea in Okegawa: this post is aimed at long term residents of Japan, who have been to all the famous hydrangea spots and / or are looking for somewhere quiet to photograph hydrangea this year. If you are only going to have one hydrangea season in Japan, I highlyRead More →
As promised, a completely revamped post for the free monthly Hanachozu Week event in Gyoda City. The event has gone some through changes. Because I updated the original post frequently, the post had become a bit ‘messy’. Moreover, this year (2023), they are switching the event from the fiscal yearRead More →
Since the start of 2023, this page showcases events by month. Below you will find a round up of the events on this June in Saitama Prefecture. Moreover, I add new events all the time, so please do pop back every now and then. Each event is linked to a pageRead More →
Republish of the annual information for the seasonal pinwheel display at Kawagoe Hikawa Shrine. Hydrangea information added in 2023. Information for this annual June event has been on insaitama since the inauguration of the event. But this is the first year I have included hydrangea information. The ‘Hikawa’ hydrangea generallyRead More →
Information for the 2023 Tokigawa Iris Festival in Saitama, Japan. Tokigawa Iris Festival The Tokigawa Iris Festival is held at the Tokigawa Iris Garden, a relatively small iris garden with about 5,000 iris. The iris bloom around the first three weeks in June. As of May 28th 2023, some ofRead More →
A selection of three places you can see hydrangea in Koshigaya City, Saitama Prefecture (close to Tokyo), Japan. Hydrangea Koshigaya City 1. Hisaizu Shrine For about 480 meters, the approach to Koshigaya Hisaizu Shrine from the Motoara river bursts with color around mid June when the hundreds of hydrangea areRead More →
For the second year in a row, the Kisai Hydrangea Festival will be celebrated at Tamashiki Shrine park. Before the pandemic, this festival was held on hydrangea road. Kisai Hydrangea Festival 2023 There are several places you can see hydrangea in Kazo City. But the Kisai area is particularly renownedRead More →
Information for the seasonal afternoon tea at Shikitei Cafe in Saitama City. In summer 2023 the theme is “Little Star Journey”. Seasonal Afternoon Tea Shikitei Cafe is a cafe restaurant located in a wedding venue Omiya Rikyu which since 2023 is more commonly known as Art Grace. Shikitei cafe isRead More →
Benibana means safflower: it is the flower of Okegawa where this Furusato Kan is located. A Furusato Kan is a type of folk museum and you can find a furusato kan in hundreds of towns around Japan. Benibana Furusato Kan The Furusato kan in Okegawa was once a private homeRead More →
Information for the newest large scale Bandai Official Gashapon opening in Japan in summer 2023. Gashapon Bandai Offical Kawajima Branch A Gashapon, also known as Gachapon, is a vending machine dispensed capsule toy. The term refers to both the machine and the capsule it dispenses with a miniature toy orRead More →