Saitama Prefecture

Kawagoe

Do
Hunt for 10-yen candy with a fistful of coins
A dagashiya is an old-fashioned candy shop where many sweets cost only 10 or 20 yen, and generations of Japanese children have stood at the shelves counting out their coins. Look for kinako-bo, chewy sticks of roasted soybean-flour candy, where a marked stick wins you another one for free. Bring small coins, since shops like these usually take cash only.
Do
Hear wind chimes ring across a summer shrine
Every summer, some Shinto shrines hang hundreds or even thousands of furin, small glass or metal wind chimes, along their paths and corridors. Walk beneath them as they ring in the breeze, and in the evening many are lit up. The displays run only from about June to early September, so check the dates before you go.
Do
Drink fresh beer next to the tanks it came from
All over Japan, small craft breweries pour their beer in taprooms set right beside the brewing tanks, so what you drink was made a few steps away. Order a few small glasses to compare styles, often with food made to go with them. The places in and around Tokyo make an easy evening out, while those farther away fit into a longer trip through the region.
Do
Hunt for old tableware at an antique market
On set days each month, antique dealers lay out stalls across the grounds of shrines and temples, with old bowls, plates and household tools spread on tables and mats. Wander the rows, pick up whatever catches your eye and ask the price, and you may find a piece to take home. Each market keeps its own schedule and the stalls start early, so check the date, go in the morning and bring cash.
Do
See flowers float in a shrine's water basin
Before praying, visitors to a shrine or temple rinse their hands at a stone water basin, and some places now fill these basins with floating seasonal flowers, a custom called hanachozu. The flowers are changed often, so the colors are different each time you go. Some displays run only at certain times of year, so check the shrine's website before a long trip.
Do
Saitama Prefecture
Snack your way along an old shopping street
A shotengai is a shopping street of small family-run shops, and many of them sell hot snacks one piece at a time over the counter. Walk from shop to shop for croquettes, taiyaki, fish-shaped cakes filled with sweet bean paste, and dango, chewy rice dumplings, and compare what each street is known for. Bring cash, and on busy streets eat beside the shop rather than while walking.

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