10D9N Spring Japan Trip: Kamen Raider Exhibition and Oiran Procession
Born just a few years shy of the 90s, I grew up with TV shows like Doraemon and Kamen Raider. These classic Japanese TV shows were being aired by TV stations back then before the rising of cable TV subscription. Gone is the good ol' time where you don't need to pay extras to get good entertainment on telly. Being so familiar with Kamen Raider story, it really surprised me to see them in one of the buildings located inside Toei Kyoto Studio Park. Like, seriously?
The reason of my surprised reaction is because I thought the attractions in Toei Kyoto Studio Park revolves around the life of samurais, geishas and ninjas. Who thought that you can see Kamen Raider in a themed park which is set around Edo period. Well, I suppose randomness character is embraced in Japan and I will do the same toward this randomness. Hahaha.
Anyway, Kamen Raider himself has evolved pretty much by decades. I only watched the shows in the 90s and hence, Kamen Raider forms which belong to other decades are not really familiar to me.
This exhibition really brings back memory to those days where my brother and I sat quietly in front of the TV whenever Kamen Raider is played on TV. We can even sing the lyric of the opening song (or ending, I can't really remember) perfectly even though they are in Japanese. If my parents forced me to learn Japanese during that age, I am quite sure I would have mastered the language by now. LOL.
The form of Kamen Raider which I remember the most from the show. If I'm not wrong, the series is called Kamen Rider Black and the main protagonist is named Kotaro Minami. Oh my gawd, I wonder how will that feel if I re-watch the show again now. Hahaha. If you happen to visit Toei Kyoto Studio Park and you want to relive your childhood, you should visit this permanent exhibition. Anyway, there is no further admission fee charged for this exhibition.
Right after we left the exhibition, we saw a line of people at both the right and left side of the main road. Turns out there is a timed parade of a procession whereby a beautiful oiran (re: courtesans) slowly and elegantly travel across the park with her entourage.
The procession timing is held irregularly and you can only know the timing when you are at Toei Kyoto Studio Park. I guess we are lucky to be able to catch this procession. We caught it around 3PM in the afternoon.
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