In case you didn't pick up on a theme in our past blogs, we officially love Old Japan. Last weekend we took a train trip up to Kawagoe, an Edo period heritage town north of Tokyo.
Our guides, Yuki (who worked with us in Australia Bethel some years back) and his wife, Naoko. It's great to be working with Yuki nice again but this time, we are in the Japan branch.
Along the way we met up a faithful couple street witnessing at the station. The guy in the middle doing his best to look as Japanese as a Kiwi can, is our traveling companion, Blair.
And a fellow Bethelite doing some train witnessing enroute to the group.
Thankfully it was not too crowded.
Naoko, Yuki, Blair and me....
Honmaru Goten of Kawagoe Castle. Turns out the castle was lost, probably one of those traditional Japanese fires... But what is a Goten I hear you ask? This beautiful wooden structure with its tatami mats and shoji screens was rebuilt 1848 (fire) as the entrance and the main hall used as waiting rooms for feudal lords who came on missions to the palace.
It's 36 degrees Celsius outside in the sun but there is a cool natural breeze wafting through the halls that tells you that this building not only looks good, it works well.
Tatami mats and shoji screens (sliding paper doors).
The gang
And the photographer
Courtyard
Sun falling on cedar
In the center of town, the old white merchant house storehouse.
And Toki-no-kane (Bell Tower) that rings 4 times a day to tell the time before mr Seiko invented the digital watch. Originally built 1624 and rebuilt in 1894 after a not so "great fire".
A tourist
The locals
Ice creams in the shade.
Blair poses for a photo opportunity.
But he is not the only one posing for a shot.
"Obi 2"
The Obi is the sash worn around the kimono.
More merchant houses
Very solid plaster window shutters
Shinjuku train station is the worlds busiest handling 2 million commuters per day.
Shinjuku's "Memory Lane" in Tokyo, a narrow ally crammed with even narrower little Japanese street food restaurants. A relic from post WWII.
Relaxed locals
Ramen noodles and beer, what could be better!
Notice our classy chef on the left.
A great day out. Thank you Yuko and Naoko.
Lloydnalex
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