Water hyacinth, Doyono Furusato Otone Roadside Station, Kazo City, Saitama, Japan. There are several different type of flowers that bloom annually in summer. One of the rarer ones, in Japan, is water hyacinth which is an aquatic plant native to South America. Supposedly they came to Japan in the MeijiRead More →
For the second year in a row the Hanyu Tennosama festival has been cancelled on account of the Coronavirus. The Hanyu Tennosama summer festival has a history of almost 400 years. It is normally celebrated annually in July, usually in the middle of the month. It is a portable shrineRead More →
The Hanasaki Summer Pools, aka water or aqua park, are as family and child friendly as the park they are in: Kazo Hanasaki Park. Hanasaki Aqua park is one of the three remaining prefectural pools. Unfortunately, the main Saitama Prefectural Pool in Ageo closed permanently in 2021. The pools inRead More →
I’ve brought the kids to Tobu Zoo a few times over the years. Our initial visit was about seven years ago and we weren’t as impressed with the zoo side on that first visit. However, they have improved the zoo over the years and we have grown to like itRead More →
The Onihei Edo-dokoro Parking Area is a rest stop in Hanyu, Saitama Prefecture, on the Tohoku Expressway on the way into Tokyo. It is most commonly called the Hanyu Parking Area despite their best efforts to market it by the name of the character it was called after. Onihei Edo-dokoroRead More →
A new branch of Kona’s Coffee Hawaiian Pancake House opened this month (August 2018) in Kazo City. There is a whole new development in the area where it opened: around Viva Home in the Shimotakayanagi area of Kazo. Kona’s Coffee is a Hawaiian style pancake and coffee house restaurant withRead More →
Rice Field Art, Ancient Lotus, Water lilies, Wintersweet, Plum Blossoms, Cherry Blossoms, Observation Tower, Nature Hall, Winter Illumination and Park (with small playground) at Kodai Hasu no Sato in Gyoda City. Also a popular spot to witness the first sunrise of the year. Kodai Hasu no Sato Kodai Hasu noRead More →
There will be no Odako Fireworks Kasukabe in 2021. They were also cancelled in 2020 due to the Coronavirus. The fireworks are quite small with just (approximately) 320 starmines and 50 smaller fireworks. They are launched annually as the finale to the traditional summer festival that starts around 3.30 pm.Read More →
Gyoda Ukijyo Matsuri or Gyoda Floating Castle Festival The Gyoda Floating Castle Festival is held every year on the last Saturday and Sunday of July. However, in both 2020 and 2021 they cancelled the festival due to the pandemic. The festival gets its name from the castle located in GyodaRead More →
Musashi No Mura Family Land in the Green is an ideal amusement park for small children. They have a really good selection of amusements that are child friendly. There is also an area with farm animals and and an option to horse ride. You can pick fruits at certain timesRead More →