Paparazzi

---

Right place, right time. That's a phrase I've used quite often in my life. Like the time I rescued 47 babies from a burning daycare, and when I landed a plane full of nuns after the pilot died at the controls, or - and this is my favourite - that time when I stood in front of a bunch of tanks in Tiananmen Square just as someone took a picture.

Well, it happened again. After a completely random decision to abandon our task of finding supper and instead go cruising down a quiet side street in the Gion district, we saw geisha! Most visitors to Kyoto only see geisha through the windows of a taxi as it goes zipping past them in traffic. We had yet to meet anyone at the hostel who saw them in person, including a couple that had been in town for almost three weeks. To see them up close and personal is indeed a rare and treasured event.

On Monday, we rode past traditional buildings and tea houses and spotted a very young woman getting her ass chewed out by an older lady. We suspected this was an okiya, home of geisha and maiko, and returning here the next day confirmed our suspicion.

While slowly walking down the street, a woman in a colourful kimono and vivid white face surfaced quietly from a side door and walked down a few steps only to vanish as quickly as she appeared. Then Denise spotted one through an open doorway. And then another appeared, and another, and another...

They seemed to materialize, here and there, for about another hour, and didn't seem to mind us getting in their faces to take pictures. Denise even asked one is she could take her picture, and she actually stopped to pose.

One of those fleeting moments in life, we felt privileged to witness such an occurrence, and went to bed that night with a smug sense of self-satisfaction.

As for those nay-sayers out there suspecting we saw fakes, you can bite me. Our sighting was confirmed by a Japanese photographer, as well as the presence of a well-known guy that operates geisha tours and swindles his customers because we got the same thing for free, neener neener!

The following day was spent with Eri, the girl I met on the plane back in March. She took Denise and I to a photo shop where they dress you up as geisha and samurai and take an exorbitant amount of money from your wallet...and snap a few pictures in the process. I felt a bit sheepish until I realized that I am, in fact, a tourist and I'm simply fulfilling my obligation. But it was actually a lot of fun and Denise looked quite stunning with her white face and bright red lips.

After changing back into normal-people clothing, we headed to neighbouring Shiga-ken, home to Japan's largest lake, Biwa-ko. Eri also treated us to a night cruise on the lake aboard the Michigan Show Boat. A surreal experience to say the least, but entertaining to no end and a very relaxing way to spend an evening. After the cruise, waiting for us at the dock were Eri's parents and her brother, loaded up with fireworks. We lit them right there on the boardwalk and managed to avoid setting ourselves afire.

Our only other notable attraction was the Fushimi-Inari Taisha and torii tunnel, a 4km long path up a mountain consisting of thousands of brightly painted gates. Many of you will recall seeing these featured in the crap-tastic movie 'Memoirs of a Geisha'. We only walked about the first 500m, as we didn't have the time for the full journey, and Denise was getting eaten alive by mosquitoes.

Seeing the skies darken, along with lightning and thunder (at very close range) we decided to make haste to our next location, only to be caught in the downpour that ensued. For a good half-hour, we stood underneath a small awning and marvelled at the stupidity of four men working on the roof of an adjacent apartment building amid metal scaffolding while lightning flashed all around.

The remainder of our vacation was spent perusing the shops and soaking up as much of Kyoto as possible. We left promising to return one day before heading back to Canada.

Camille & Denise

---

Photos

Geisha of Gion
The real deal.

Fushimi-Inari Taisha
Toriis galore - a 4km long tunnel of these bright orange gates.

Geisha & Okasan
"What are those silly foreigners looking at?"

Michigan Show Boat
Night cruise on Biwa-ko with a view of the Prince Hotel.

Overheard
"Like, oh my god, did you just fart?"

I'm late, I'm late...
...for a very important date!

Fashion Show
Notice the long flowing silk obi, and how it accentuates her shuffled walk.

Torii Tunnel
Japan: Keeping suppliers of orange paint in business since 1257.

Kinoshita-san
That's Eri, the girl from Kyoto that helped me get things sorted out when I landed at Kansai in March.

Geisha Shop
Denise sporting full make-up, kimono, and wooden sandals, tries not to fall down the stairs.

Hanabi
Shiga-ken Police APB: We have a pyromaniac on the loose near Lake Biwa.

Kenny Craig
Look into my eyes, look into my eyes, the eyes, the eyes, not around the eyes, don't look around my eyes, look into my eyes...

Maiko Denise
Studio picture from the shop. I did a double take the first time I saw her with all the make-up on.

Samurai Camille
Har-de-fuckin'-har. You can stop laughing at me now. Really, that's enough.

Comments

[Mom]

Cool Geisha
Denise looks great as a Geisha but Camille, where is the picture of you in full regalia?

[Jessie]

Hi Denise, you look good in the picture, dressed as a Geisha.

[Cor]

...Now your under.
When you awake you will take off those Samurai clothes and believe you are a ninja turtle. How did you know I was laughing at you? Good Little Britain Ref!