Let me continue from where I left off my post on June 25th. I enjoyed observing "Deluxe Romance Car (DRC)", the EMU Tobu 1720 series, in Tobu Museum; however, dissatisfaction was left for me, because the exhibit was just a half-cut of one top car. How should I work my frustration off? My answer was to look for a complete exhibit of DRC.
My next destination was Iwatsuki Joshi Park in Saitama City, some 40 kilometers northeast of Tokyo. Iwatsuki Joshi Park is the only place where a "complete" top car of DRC is preserved. It's a municipal park being managed by Saitama City. Unit MoHa1726 of DRC is preserved in a corner of the vast park. MoHa1726 was built by Nippon Sharyo in 1960. After operating for 31 years, it was retired from the track in 1991. MoHa1726 was then donated from Tobu Railway to Iwatsuki City (present Saitama City) in 1994. The carrying expenses from Tobu Railway to Iwatsuki Joshi Park were supported by two local benefactors.
I was really impressed that MoHa1726 is in a good state of preservation despite being outdoors. I had the deepest respect for the preservation work of Saitama City and the local people in the past 28 years. Thanks to the dedicated preservation work, I could fully enjoy observing the nostalgic body design with a large front hood, the dense underfloor equipment such as an array of resistors and the lovely mushroom-type rooftop air conditioners. I was more than satisfied!
