The viewing of fireflies at Kinchakuda is one of the earliest firefly (hotaru in Japanese) events in Saitama that I know of. You can see them as early as the end of May, although its usually early June. With the weather the way it has been, this is one ofRead More →
Kinchakuda Red Spider Lily Festival 2021, Hidaka, Saitama Japan – They cancelled the 2020 festival on account of the Coronavirus outbreak. Moreover, on the 17th of September 2020 the city cut the spider lilies that had grown to prevent more people coming. It is too soon to tell what will happenRead More →
Koma Jinja aka Koma Shrine, Hidaka, Saitama Prefecture Many years ago my husband and I visited a shrine on the way home from Chichibu. I didn’t think too much of it to be honest. The thatched roof former residence – a nationally designated Important Cultural property – out the backRead More →
The Seibu Train Festa is back! The event was completely cancelled in 2020. However, this year (2021) you have to book in advance to attend. If you do not book in advance, you can not attend the event. And once you have made a booking you cannot change any detailsRead More →
In a regular year, the 1300 year old Koma Shrine has two different cherry blossom festivals. One is a celebration of the 300 year old Higanzakura on the grounds. The other a more typical “sakura matsuri”. But this is not a typical year. In 2021, it seems that Koma shrineRead More →
Kinchakuda in spring: cherry blossoms, rapeseed (canola flowers) and purple flowers Kinchakuda needs little introduction. If you don’t know it by name, you’ll know it as the most famous place for red spider lilies in Japan. However, what you might not know about Kinchakuda is that it is not justRead More →
Saiboku No Mori, Saiboku Headquarters, Hidaka, Saitama, Japan! In September 2019 Saiboku Ham opened a new play area for kids where the putter golf used to be. It is a beautifully manicured hilly area of grass, with ten pieces of athletic playground equipment. Saiboku Saiboku Ham is the headquarters ofRead More →
Komazan Shoden-in Shorakuji commonly spelt Shotenin in English stands proud at the top of the Koma peak in Hidaka. It is like a beacon for all enthralled by religious architecture. It is easy to spot it from a distance with its impressive temple structure, but more so thanks to theRead More →
Gojo waterfall, Hidaka. When I first wrote this post in 2016 there was no information in English anywhere around the web. I looked up information in Japanese and it said that the falls are named after The five virtues of Confucius, which is written “gojou” or “gojyou” in English. ButRead More →
The Japanese sougou 総合 is used to indicate a multi-purpose park and that is exactly what Hidaka Sougou park is. It is often translated into Hidaka Total Park in English. The park is free in, with free parking. It is close to the golf course for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. HereRead More →