Kawagoe

Hi dear sisters ...... long time no talk, I feel so bad for being ‘lazy’ but I really try to take things easy on the Bae front. Mercy me that every time I look at our gorgeous man, my weak heart will start pounding a little harder, my poor head spinning a few more rounds and that’s definitely not helping my situation here. Hehe but that doesn’t mean I have been lounging around at home in my pajamas and foam hair rollers counting how many birds in the sky would fly by my balcony every day. But I do have to say judging by the amount of 'souvenirs' they left on my balcony floor, there are quite a few culprits out there :)

Hehe, enough nonsense from me. This is Japanese Golden Week and we went to a small town in Saitama Prefecture called Kawagoe (川越市), just a 30 minutes JR train ride from Tokyo. (Note : hehe just for my record only, take #1/#2 bus from Kawagoe eki or walk through Crea Mall from Hon-Kawagoe eki to Nakacho) Kawagoe is known as ‘Little Edo’ because the town still preserves its traditional old structures and bell tower, creating a nostalgic atmosphere from the Edo period.

Kawagoe used to be a prosperous commercial town with timber, rice and commodities trade. The main street Kurazukuri Dori is lined with historical arts, pottery and kimono shops :

Kurazukuri (蔵造り) style architecture is a unique Japanese architecture found here in Kawagoe. These warehouse style structures were constructed with massive fireproof walls in several layers for wealthy merchants to store their valuable goods. See how thick the window wall is :

Toki no Kane - the Bell Tower was first built in 1624 and today the bell chime still rings 4 times a day :

Hehe, 2 famous local food are imo (sweet potatos) and unagi (BBQ eel). This unagi specialty restaurant near Candy Lane was recommended to us, called Unakko :

Our delicious and healthy lunch! I remember Yong Joon also had unagi dinner at Masuya in Saitama, guess he likes BBQ eel too, yum yum :)

Just caught sight of a pretty house in the neighbourhood ...

The nearby Kashiya Yokocho (Candy Lane) in Kawagoe comprises of a dozen old traditional Japanese candies stores, a very colorful street ......

These hundreds-years old stores still turn out old-fashioned handmade candies and snacks in their back kitchens

The candies are really pretty, delicate and colorful. I am not a candy person but the sight and smell on Candy Lane is just heavenly .....

After we 'breathed' in enough fragrance from Candy Lane, we proceeded to Kita-in Temple, a historical landmark first built in 830 A.D.

Sure, Kawagoe cannot be compared to Kamakura or Nikko since the latter two are much grander and of more historical value, but the charm is it's relatively not as touristy and remains pretty local and rustic. By now, I got pretty exhausted and dizzy from the sun and all the walking, so we decided to head home. Haha of course, I save the BEST for last! We picked the JR train back to Ikebukuro, a very popular Tokyo hub for Asian tourists. Why? Because 'yours truly' have another agenda in mind. Tada! OIOI Marui (it's not 0101 nor oi-oi as most tourists pronounce it, ok?) Ikebukuro Face Shop corner ......

I asked the 2 middle-aged male staffs by the escalator and they pointed me promptly to the right spot without even blinking for a second. When I walked past them, I vaguely heard them whispering and giggling behind my back. Yikes, I must have the word 'obasan' written all over my forehead! I didn’t really have time to analyze that as my heart has already flown to this guy @@ The promotion in Japan - you will receive this gorgeous poster if you buy 3500yen of products.

To get this precious postcards set, you have to buy another 5000 yen of stuffs.

There were a few fans already who had their shopping bags filled with rolls of posters with a big smile on their faces. While I asked hubby to snap whatever shots he could on anything Yonsama, I was busy scouring through the shelves tried to come up with 8500 yen worth of creams and soaps. Since I am not a Faceshop gal and those skin care products for the more 'mature' women are already out of stock (haha, surprise surprise!), so I comforted myself that I don't really need another poster of Yonsama :( You know what I should have done? I should have just carried this standee home, he would look gorgeous at my front door greeting my guests :)