I wouldn’t have visited Saitama if not for this new visit-all-of-Japan’s prefecture challenge. Whenever I hear the name of this prefecture, all I conjure in my head are images of Tokyo’s extended urban sprawl, where people who work there choose to reside to save up on expensive rental costs. Perhaps that’s what I would’ve ended up finding had I decided to just ride a train to Saitama station if ever there is one just to get it over with. Instead, we enlisted the help of Wikitravel and ended up with a viable alternative called Kawagoe which is said to house some preserved architecture from the days of Old Tokyo in an area named Little Edo.
Getting to Kawagoe can be a bit tricky because there are several Kawagoe-named train stations to choose from. All of them will lead you to Kawagoe but some might be more strategically located depending on where you want to go. In my case, my main consideration was which station connected with Shin-Okubo, the nearest train station to the capsule hotel I stayed at in Shinjuku. In the end, I ended up taking the Yamanote/Tobu-Tojo lines to Ikebukuro then onward to Kawagoe station, which appeared to be the main train station there. Hon-Kawagoe and Kawagoeshi are closer to Little Edo, but served by different train lines.
The area is accessible on a day trip. As with almost all train stations in Japan, there is no shortage of coin lockers where you can stash your luggage if you have already checked out of your Tokyo accommodation. Later that day, I went straight to Narita for my evening flight through three train transfers that almost took two hours. Bottomline: I didn’t have to return to Tokyo just to connect to the airport. Be wary of intervals and connecting times, though, as some trains are limited. The delays might just cost you your flight.
Upon arriving at Kawagoe station, I left my luggage at the locker next to Starbucks and decided to have a late breakfast there before heading out. Kawagoe has its own bus system but I wasn’t really in the mood to figure out routes that day so I ended up walking everywhere, which was a bad idea given the outdoor sauna weather. And that is one helpful tip! Bring an extra shirt with you if you are exploring during the summer unless you want to drown in your own sweat for the entire day.
It took around half an hour for me to get to the site of Kawagoe Castle, or at least what remains of it. The area is right across from a huge museum, and one of only several places remaining intact is the Honmaru Goten Palace. Considered as a Designated Tangible Cultural Property, the palace is your typically minimalist Japanese abode of wood, a fusion of beige and brown, wide halls and spacious rooms with sliding doors that provide a good view of the garden/s. Despite the style being repetitive, I just love the sense of peace and the simplicity of such living quarters, not to mention the refreshing breeze that pours through those sliding doors.
The place itself was not that big and there weren’t a lot of visitors when I went. The admission fee was a mere JPY100 (~PHP40). If you are interested in neither history nor architecture, that’s a small price to pay for temporary refuge from the summer heat. What followed was more walking which eventually led me to Little Edo. Once you see the wooden clock tower from afar, one of the several images associated with Kawagoe, then you’ll know you’ve made it. One of the first to greet you will be Starbucks, housed in one of those old clay warehouse buildings, right next to the clock tower itself.
Taking a selfie is a real challenge because this small alley leading to the main road, where the rest of the old buildings are, is never devoid of tourists. Some of them will be wearing kimonos for the total immersion experience. It is just so difficult to find a spot you can call your own. Once you reach that main road, all you have to do is head south to get back to Kawagoe Station. Along the way, you will pass by one of the other three stations there. Consult Google if that might be a better option for you depending on where you are going next.
[KAWAGOE] Little Edo
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