Your family may have taken one of those old-timey photos at a county fair or maybe Knott’s Berry Farm. To me it looked fun to dress up like a family on Bonanza with dance hall girls. I just couldn’t think of a costume I would wear in that setting. House boy? Native American? No and no. Which is why, in Tokyo, I made a reservation at the Samurai Armor Photo Studio!
From the moment Dawn and I arrived, Takemura-san led me through the history of the Kacchu suit as he put on each piece. After 15 minutes and a lot of “this has to be super tight, it’s like a corset", he was done. Takemura-san was SUPER enthusiastic the whole time as he had me strike poses and make attack sounds. He really made the experience a blast. Even though my original thought was to end up with sepia tone photos, I didn't realize the armor would be so colorful.
A bit of history: Samurais were paid government warriors from 1185-1868 and eventually became the rulers of the country. They were the highest social class for almost 7 centuries. They eventually lost this position when feudalism was abolished in 1871.
Fun fact: There was a clan of samurais named the Maedas. (Traditional spelling of my last name). They occupied most of central Honshu in the 15th and 16th centuries. There’s a museum dedicated to them. https://www.kanazawa-museum.jp/maedatosa/english/index.html
That is the coolest thing I have ever seen and I mean it! U should have those hanging up in your house! They are over the top AWESOME!!!
You look amazing!! Very warrior like. The uniforms are phenomenal. Thanks for sharing this story and your experience. I appreciate the extra work you go through to share. I've gotten lazy about it.