On the 14th, the Chichibu Railway, which runs in the northern part of Saitama Prefecture, operated a steam locomotive with a special head mark depicting the main character, Eiichi Shibusawa, in line with the start of broadcasting of NHK's taiga drama "Seiten wo Tsukei".

This SL is based on the fact that Eiichi Shibusawa, who is the main character of this year's taiga drama "Seiten wo Tsuketsu" and is called the "father of the modern Japanese economy," is from Fukaya City, Saitama Prefecture. It operated on a limited basis.



On the 14th, a steam locomotive with a head mark with the image character "Fukka-chan" of Eiichi Shibusawa and Fukaya City appeared at Kumagai Station, and departed with families and railroad fans.



After that, SL made a round trip on the 57km section to Chichibu Station, and a special lecture about Eiichi Shibusawa was also given using the in-car broadcast.



A large number of railroad fans gathered along the railway line and photographed a male figure running while whistling.



A woman in her thirties who visited from Tokyo and got on the steam locomotive said, "It was a very laid-back and good trip. The scenery is great."

Public viewing of the taiga in Fukaya

Along with the start of the NHK Taiga drama "Seiten wo Tsukei", a public viewing was held on the 14th in Fukaya City, Saitama Prefecture, the birthplace of the main character, Eiichi Shibusawa.



The NHK Taiga drama "Seiten wo Tsuketsu" depicts the life of Eiichi Shibusawa, who was born in Fukaya City and has been involved in the establishment and development of many companies as a businessman and is known as the "father of the modern Japanese economy."



On the 14th, a public viewing was held at the Fukaya Citizens' Cultural Center to coincide with the first broadcast of the NHK Taiga drama, and about 250 people including local citizens selected by lottery participated.



Shibusawa, who was born as a farmer, learned the attitude of those who stand above him from his father, and the appearance of living freely with his cousins ​​was drawn, and the participants were watching the screen.



In order to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus infection, the event took measures such as significantly reducing the number of visitors and increasing the space between seats.



A local man in his thirties said, "I'm looking forward to future growth as to how Shibusawa will change Japan."