Riverside hydrangea, Okegawa. Sometimes it pays to get lost. I was attempting to go to one of the three safflower fields in Okegawa today. The safflower where nowhere in sight and I thought that both I and Google had remembered the place incorrectly. So I opted to abandon Google mapsRead More →
Hatchoko Park is the park around the eponymous Lake Hatcho in Yoshimi town in the Hiki District of Saitama. Lake Hatcho is a man-made lake in a natural woody hillside in the Prefectural Hiki Nature Park. Hatchoko Park In my personal opinion there is nothing exceptional about Hatchoko park. Don’tRead More →
Five year old really wanted to play in some water today. However, most of the water play areas in parks are closed on account of the Coronavirus. It was a blessing in disguise, because instead we went to a Suzumegawa Sabo Dam park with a natural river. My favorite kind!Read More →
Sakuranoyama Park is located in Ogose Town, Saitama, Japan. It is a small park, but very picturesque in spring. As you can probably guess, it is thanks to the eponymous cherry blossoms (sakura) of the park. And as the name also suggests it is a mountainside (yama) park. The parkRead More →
Kuroyama is a beautiful, mystical, rugged area of Ogose town. It is best known for the three waterfalls of Kuroyama (Kuroyama Santaki), which were once ranked as the 9th most scenic waterfalls in Japan. They don’t enjoy as much fame these days and the area – while beautiful – doesRead More →
Information for the first sunrise, Hatsuhinode, in Saitama in 2021. If you’ve read any other of my blog posts about January in Japan, you’ve probably already got the message that it is my favorite month in Japan. One of the main reasons for that is all the New Year events,Read More →
Sanba Keikoku – Known in English as either Sanba Gorge, Sanba Valley or Sanba Ravine. It is a beautiful ravine in nature rich Tokigawa, Saitama Prefecture (Japan), North West of Tokyo. Despite the town’s remote location the area is serviced by a (infrequent) train. The station, Myokaku station, is aRead More →
Kodomo no Hi – Children’s day Japan, also known as Boy’s Day, is a national holiday that is celebrated annually on May 5th. It is the last of four public holidays that comprise Golden Week. There are two symbols of Kodomo no Hi: the “Kabuto” samurai helmet and “Koinobori” flyingRead More →
Golden Week 2020 Japan – This year Golden Week will be unlike any other we’ve ever experienced. With the whole country under a State of Emergency for the whole period of Golden Week what will it mean for Golden Week 2020 in Japan? Update April 24th: Hours after this postRead More →
Spring flowers at the flower oasis “Hana no Oasis” in Konosu. Hana no Oasis, Konosu Hana no Oasis is a community garden. It is located in a rural area of Konosu amid dozens of paddy fields. The garden is landscaped through the seasons with seasonal blooms. It isn’t particularly big,Read More →