Popular tourist spots to feel Japan Vol.46 The town of the time bell and the Kura Kawagoe The townscape of the Kurazukuri with Edo atmosphere, Kitain Temple, and Kawagoe Festival

Kawagoe in Saitama Prefecture takes less than 1 hour with Red Arrow Express “Koedo” from Shinjuku in Tokyo.

Kawagoe is announced “The town of the time bell and the Kura” in the train, and it is the tasteful town symbolized by the bell tower “The Time Bell” that showed the time and well understood by citizens since the beginning of the Edo Period, and “The Townscape of the Kurazukuri” since long time ago.

The tower of the time bell has wooden 3 floors, and it is 16 meters high.
It rings 4 times every day; it is at 6 AM, the noon, and 3 PM.
With the color of the sky, the views, the scents, and various atmospheres, it tells the time to the town.

“Ichibangai” is the townscape to tell the atmosphere of the Edo Period that profound buildings of “Kurazukuri” are built.
The oldest building is “Osawa’s house”, that was built in 1792, and it is designated as the national important cultural property.

The reason why merchants of Kurazukuri were built in Kawagoe is tile-roofing, that is fireproof building, was being popular in Edo.
Kawagoe was connected strongly with Edo in the business, so that it was influenced by this culture.

Most buildings in Kitain Temple are designated as the important cultural properties, and it was the famous temple built in 830 A.D.
The room “Make-up room of Kasuga-no-tsubone” used by Kasuga-no-Tsubone, who was a wet nurse of the 3rd Shogun, Iemitsu TOKUGAWA, was the birthplace of Iemitsu and used as a special room called “Kyakuden” when it was in Edo-jo Castle that was the headquarter of the Edo Shogunate, and it was transferred as Shoin (drawing room).

The brilliant and strong armor helmet and the landscape painting are drawn on the Fusuma in the tasteful Kyakuden, and there is the alter room.
Iemitsu might walk around that tatami, and it shows the high formality as the birth room.

Also, Shoin is the beautiful tatami floored Japanese room.
It shows the atmosphere used by a woman, and opening Shoji and the light on the balcony feel softness.
When you visit Kawagoe, you should see them.

“Kawagoe Festival” was held on 10/20 and 10/21, and it is one of the biggest festival in Kawagoe that has a lot of viewpoints; well sounded Japanese festival musics, gorgeous floats decorated with dolls and carvings, mysterious night views lighted up with lanterns, and so on.

The overwhelmed powerful parade of floats will make you excited.

There are the time bells sounded in Koedo, profound “Kurazukuri” merchants, and silent “Kitain Temple”.
Why don’t you feel the Edo atmosphere in Koedo, Kawagoe with a lot of view spots?

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Source of photos;https://retrip.jp/articles/4695/ https://www.asahi.com/and_travel/articles/SDI2018033059451.html

Source of photos;http://www.dnp.co.jp/denshoubi/works/fusuma/k02.html

Source of photos;https://motokaji.com/event/20171014_kawagoematsuri.html

Tags:tatami tatamiroom Japaneseroom kawagoe touristspot feelJapan Thetimebell Kura Kurazukuri KitainTemple KawagoeFestival Osawashouse Koedo