The Shitamachi Museum

panorama of shitamachi museum entrance of shitamachi museum shitamachi townscape shitamachi clothing sign of shitamachi museum

The Shitamachi Museum exhibits folk matelials about life of plebeian.

The Shitamachi Museum located south in Ueno Park in Tokyo was constructed in 1980 for exhibiting folk matelials about life of plebeian in Tokyo during the Edo and Showa period (from 1603 to 1989). In the first floor, it re-creates the street of stores and houses in Taisho period (from 1912 to 1926). You should take off your shoes to look inside houses.

As you know, Japanese take off their shoes when they enter their houses. If you visit your Japanese friends and enter their houses with your shoes on, you're stopped by them as you enter.

In the second floor, it exhibits Japanese old games you can experinece, for example, BeiGoma (throw a spinnig top and shoot other tops to drop from the stage) and Kendama (cup and ball game) and more. Furthermore, it exhibits Bandai (platform for the attendant and collecting a fee in public bath) and the room of plebeian in 1930 to 1965.

There is an English guide there so you pick up it and enjoy there.