Interesting Facts!! #51

51. Kawagoe

Kawagoe (川越) is located about 30 minutes by train from central Tokyo and is suitable as a day trip destination. Kawagoe is famous for its sweet potatoes, and the local "Candy Street" sells such treats as sweet potato chips, sweet potato ice cream, sweet potato coffee, and even sweet potato beer, brewed at the local Koedo Brewery.


The city has been designated an important preservation district for groups of historic buildings where rows of magnificent merchants' houses, and Kurazukuri (clay-walled warehouse-styled) buildings, are in the traditional storehouse-style stand side-by-side. They have retains an ambiance reminiscent of an old town from the Edo Period (1603-1867) and allows us to imagine the streets from past centuries. It is called "Ko-edo," or "Little Edo," because of its city architecture.



One of the most important temples in the Greater Tokyo area, Kitain Temple, is Kawagoe's other main attraction. It is home to the only remaining structures of the former Edo Castle.

The Bell of Time (時の鐘) is a bell tower. The present structure goes back to 1894, a year after the Great Fire of Kawagoe. It is a three-story tower measuring 16 meters in height. The tower has been telling time to the city's residents for 350 years and has been deemed as a symbol of the city. 



Please visit, looks like a good experience for a taste of old Japan.

-The more you know~