Marigolds, night illumination, Moss phlox, sunflowers and other seasonal blooms at the scenic Marigold Hill in Honjo City, Northern Saitama. And new information in October 2021: GO GO HALLOWEEN event! Marigold Hill (no Oka) Marigold no Oka, aka Marigold Hill, is a small park in Honjo City. Like really small.Read More →
Jomine Park in the unassuming Kamikawa Town in the North of Saitama is one of Japan’s most famous winter cherry blossoms spots. Moreover, it is one of only a handful of places in Japan where you can see red maple leaves and cherry blossoms at the same time. Normally, theRead More →
With summer holidays around the corner, it has me thinking about places to bring the kids. In a “normal” year we visit Ireland for the whole of summer. However, due to the pandemic, we have been confined to Japan the last two years. As we are avoiding indoors at allRead More →
‘Tapioca and Tart’ at Layer cafe, located along the Arakawa riverbed on the grounds of a Karinto factory in Fukaya. Layer Cafe Layer cafe opened on the grounds of Asahi Karinto’s Hanazono factory in April 2020. Karinto is a type of sweet deep fried traditional Japanese snack food. The frontRead More →
Fukaya Sunflowers While driving to Northern Saitama today, along the Saikai Kaido (aka route 140) beautiful tall sunflowers already in full bloom captured my attention. Actually, in fairness, I think I spotted a camera man first on the foot path. I remember having the fleeting thought ‘ooh, wonder what he’sRead More →
Yano Fishing Park is located in a valley in Kamikawa Town in the Northern (Kodama) area of Saitama Prefecture, right on the border of Gunma Prefecture. Kamikawa Town doesn’t get a lot of publicity. With the result it is one of the most unspoiled areas of Saitama Prefecture. However, KamikawaRead More →
Hoanji is a 400 year old temple in Kumagaya City, Saitama. It is regarded locally as an hydrangea temple. However, it is not “thee” hydrangea temple: the most famous one is Nogoji. Nogoji’s hydrangea are off limits in 2021. Thankfully Hoan-ji is open to the public and welcomes hydrangea hunters!Read More →
The Naked Men Festival, Kamikawa, Saitama. Naked Men Festival The naked men festival is on the 19th of November annually, in Kamikawa town, Saitama prefecture. And during the time the festival is on there is also a winter cherry blossom festival on a ten minute drive away. The cherry blossomsRead More →
To help prevent the spread of the Coronavirus, Nogoji will be closed to the public from May 29th to July 4th 2021. Please note, that there are several places throughout Saitama that have decided to close to the public this year. Always check with the official source for any lastRead More →
There is such an obsession in Japan in spring to see the cherry blossoms, then the wisteria, the moss phlox, the azalea, the nemophila etc. Its all about one flower or bloom. But come May, its open garden season. And people turn their attention from the large displays of oneRead More →