How to Catch a Geisha…with your eyes: 

1. Head over to Gion, Kyoto’s famous Geisha district.
2. Line up on the streets right before sundown outside an ochaya (a teahouse)- the best time to catch a geisha is when they are on their way to meet clients around 6pm.
3. Don’t call them geisha- geisha in Kyoto are highly regarded and in a different class from your everyday geisha. Call them Geiko.
4. Also, don’t call them geiko- a lot of them are actually geiko in training. They can be as young as 15 years old. Call them Maiko.
5. Take pictures, but don’t touch- these are busy working women!
6. They are not whores- they just play drinking games with wealthy and important paying men.
7. Listen for ringing bells- maiko wear bells on their shoes.You’ll know it’s them coming around the corner.
8. Snap a photo quickly before they shuffle into the ochaya- You’ll only have a few minutes before they’re all gone!

*It didn’t occur to me until later when someone mentioned how odd it is for grown adults to wait excitedly in the dark  for young girls to pass in the night…¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Maiko on her way| December, 2015

Mia, our Geiko seeing tour guide | December,2015