Kawagoe (川越) Festival!

The Kawagoe Matsuri (Japanese for festival) is a culturally important festival held in Saitama prefecture in Kawagoe city. Held only once a year, on the 3rd Saturday and Sunday in October, millions of tourists (and study abroad students like me!) flock over here to view its special floats, eat its matsuri food, and take part in Japanese culture. Here are some pictures to bring vivid imagery to your mind :)

festival atmosphere immediately outside the station!

festival games! *bang bang bang

ramen hambuger?? what is this amazing-sounding food?

caramel apples

Hiroshima-style Okonomiyaki! They're hugeeeeeeee

                     Huge Octopus!! going inside my TAKOYAKI! :) octopus balls.

Kawagoe is famous for Satsumaimo - Sweet potato!

Sweet potato soup!                                                                Fried pasta sticks 0.o?

Tokyo really likes bananas.... Chocolate bananas!

more festival food. at night !

Catch your favorite turtle!

Pikachu snacks!

Hello Kitty snacks!

Hashimaki - chopstick snack; okonomiyaki like 

snack wrapped around chopsticks!

Fish your favorite toy!

Floats at the festival! Kawagoe festival is famous for its many floats. I'm not sure what the tradition is, but at night, the floats battle each other in music and performance. There is a video at the end showing one of the many "music” battles of the night. For more information, here is the Kawagoe Festival website: http://kawagoematsuri.jp/English/index.html

<it's in English :)>

picture of one float battling with another!

Here's video of a float battle:

Hopefully you can see that this is two floats battling each other with their musics and dances!

                                        

And another one! this one is longer and two floats are battling too!