Gion and Geisha

The Gion district, which was the location of our Kyoto hotel, is interesting for its several shrines and it's bustling main street. Most of interest, however, is the vast matrix of quaint, narrow alleyways. Spaced out anong these small lanes are nondescript restaurants and private clubs.

As Gion is Kyoto's most famous geisha district, many of these barely-marked entrances undoubtedly lead to geisha houses. Contrary to popular western misconceptions, geisha are not prostitutes. Rather, they are trained in the traditional arts and in conversation, and their primary role is to make men feel like kings when they are in the private confines of the geisha house. These are private clubs and no one is admitted to a geisha house without a proper introduction.

During our stay in Gion, twice we saw small groups of women in kimonos with their hair pinned up and their faces painted white, rushing somewhere in their wooden shoes. Likely these were not geisha, but were maiko - young women training to be geisha.