Kawagoe

We've made two trips to Kawagoe. Once in July 2011 and again in October 2012. Kawgoe is famous for preserving parts of the city to look very much like they did during the Edo period.

This is an old fireproof store from around 1720

The first time we went, it was raining. We didn't get a rickshaw ride. In fact the rickshaw drivers were pretty keen for business.

We did buy some nice umbrellas though!

The street was very scenic with lots of people out browsing and shopping.

Kawagoe is very famous for its bell tower 'tokino kane'. It was originally built in 1624, however it had to be rebuilt in 1894 after the Great Fire of Kawagoe. It is the most famous bell in Japan and rings to tell the time.

We visited the 'Honmaru Goten', which is the middle building of Kawagoe Castle and is the only surviving part. 

The lord of the castle lived in this beautiful 545 sq. metre house. There were peaceful gardens inside and it was a lovely peaceful place. 

Even the boys had their zen moment

We thought we'd love to build a house like this.

When we got back to the town, we found a street festival on. The kids got to paint lanterns and play a 'knocking the cushions out' game.

We met Tokino Kane Man who proved to be awesome!

There was then a parade of soldiers in historical costumes carrying muskets. They stopped to fire them every hundred metres or so.

The next time we came back to Kawagoe was for the famous Matsuri. This festival is held once a year in October and is a musical battle between fantastically decorated floats that are pulled around the city centre. The spectacular floats have 'telescopic' levels that progressively lift until a mascot statue rises from the very top.

Musical band playing flutes, drums and bells.

Bands and dancers compete with each other

Wolfie!!

There were huge crowds, but it was a real festival atmosphere.

Everyone got to take part.

Lots and lots of interesting faces at the festival.

These girls were having a fruit juice to refresh.

Historical Kawagoe definitely stood up to two really interesting visits.

Hakodate

I went to a conference in Hakodate in Hokkaido in June 2012. We stayed at a ryokan and had a traditional Japanese dinner after our meeting.

After dinner, we went in a bus up Mount Hakodate to see the famous night view. It is rated as one of the best three night views in the world (alongside Naples and Hong Kong). It really was quite beautiful view, with views of the ocean both sides of the peninsula and the city lit up.

The next morning, we had some free time so I took the chance to explore the city. Hakodate has a tram network.

First stop was the famous morning market. Many varieties of crab, shellfish, squid and fish, both local and imported for sale. Hakodate is famous throughout Japan for its seafood.

Those melons are ¥12,000 (about NZ$180)

King crabs and fresh uni (kina in NZ)

A boat full of crabs

A real novelty was a tank where you could fish for live squid swimming around. When you caught one, the lady would cut it and clean it. Less than a minute after being caught squid sashimi is on your plate for ¥500.

I then went for a walk along the waterfront. Hakodate is an old port town and was the first to open up to foreign trade in 1854. Old warehouses still exist, however they've been preserved and converted to trendy shops, cafes and restaurants.

It still operates as a fishing port with squid boats alongside.

The early foreign influence in Hakodate is still evident with Christian churches on the hillside.

The Russian Orthodox Church

The Roman Catholic Church

This is the Higashi Honganji temple

On my walk, I was quite excited to find Japan's first concrete electricity pole. It was set up in 1923, is ten metres tall, 47 centimetres square at the base and 19.5 centimetres square at the top. 

I then took the tram to Goryokaku which is a large star shaped fort built from 1857 to 1864. In 1868, one of the last samurai from the Tokugawa shogunate, Enomoto Takeaki fled from Edo (old Tokyo) with eight warships and landed at Hakodate occupying Goryokaku. He declared a northern republic Ezo and Takeaki was elected president. In April 1869, the Imperial Army and Navy sailed North and after a naval engagement in Hakodate Bay, landed 7,000 infantry troops. Enomoto surrendered in May 1869 and the Ezo Republic ceased to exist.

The fort is now a very scenic park.

Lunch was at 'Lucky Pierrot', a local Hokkaido burger chain.

Back to Tokyo in the afternoon. Hakodate is very nice and well worth a visit.