Information for Saitama Citizen’s Day or Prefecture Day or Saitama day, kenmin no hi 県民の日 in Japanese. Saitama Citizen’s day is on the 14th of November each year. Kenmin no Hi literally means citizen’s day, but when I first came to Japan and until very recently it was called PrefectureRead More →
When you think of Saitama’s famous shaved ice cafes, where comes to mind? For me, Azami Reizo, Kore ga kakigori, Craft Cafe and Yamadaya are the first that come to mind. We’ve been to three out of four and so far, and for us personally, Yamadaya is our top pick.Read More →
Blueberry and Strawberry Picking at Sayama Berryland – not at the same time! June is blueberry season in Japan. Winter and Spring is strawberry picking season. Sayama Berryland is one of the largest berry picking farms in the Kanto Region (aka Greater Tokyo area). Sayama Berryland is quite well knownRead 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 →
They cancelled the Koshigaya Fireworks three years in a row (2020 – 2022) due to the pandemic. But this year, they are on! Koshigaya Fireworks 2023 The date for the 2023 Koshigaya fireworks has been set as Saturday July 29th. This event attracts about 250,000 spectators annually. It is theRead More →
For the last couple of years Ageo City have been replacing the playground at Ageo Sports Park. The old equipment is now almost all gone, but there is still two pieces that may or may not remain. Several pieces have been completely demolished including a cement monstrosity which was visuallyRead More →
The Saitama Shintoshin Water Fight Festival and World Festa is one of the summer holiday highlights! It attracts a large number of visitors each year. Approximately 60,000 people participated in the 2019 event. The event was cancelled for three years in a row during the pandemic (2020 to 2022) andRead More →
A weird and wonderful junk yard ~ meets open air museum, at one of Kannabe Doken construction company work yards, reportedly once the Ogose Sake Brewery. For this week’s photo Friday, I want to share with you one of my happy places in Ogose town! And I promise you, thisRead More →
A selection of 10 Strawberry Picking farms in Saitama, near and commutable from Tokyo, for the 2023 Ichigo-gari season. Update May 30th 2023: strawberry picking season is now over at the majority of these farms. They will reopen for the 2024 season in winter. Strawberry Picking near Tokyo Strawberry pickingRead More →
A selection of 10 flowers that bloom in Japan in January. I say it often, because it is true, but my favorite month in Japan is January. There is so much to do in Japan in January. And as it is one of the driest months of the year, itRead More →