🗺️ Gyoda City Local Museum Armor Dressing Experience行田市郷土博物館 甲冑の着用体験

The "Gyoda City Local Museum," built on the site of the ruins of Ninjo Castle, holds an exciting armor-wearing event for foreign tourists every spring and autumn. Visitors can try on traditional Japanese armor and protective gear. The weight of the armor used for the experience is almost identical to what samurai wore at the time, allowing participants to feel the atmosphere of becoming a samurai. The staff providing the dressing service are all volunteers from the city. One person’s dressing is assisted by 4 to 5 skilled staff members, transforming you into a valiant warrior in just 10 minutes. Since the staff help guests with the dressing, even first-time participants can feel at ease! The experience begins! Special children's armor and women's armor are also prepared. Every year, many parents bring their children specifically to participate in this event. It’s thrilling to wear the samurai armor that one has only seen in historical dramas. Then, you put on the protective armor known as "doumaru," which is quite heavy. Finally, you wear the helmet called "kabuto," and the transformation is complete. Although it looks impressive, the entire body feels heavy and cumbersome, making it difficult to walk. It’s hard to imagine how samurai in the past managed to wield swords while wearing such heavy equipment. Many people have seen armored samurai in movies and on television, but few have seen them in person, let alone experienced the feeling of wearing samurai armor. This activity is easy for people of all ages and genders to participate in, and of course, you can take photos to commemorate the experience.