On my second visit to Japan, all I wanted was to see a Geisha. A Geisha is right up there for me on a mystical level, with unicorns. Well, maybe not quite that mystical. But they do represent something mysterious and fascinating. The Geisha is a dying tradition, with only 1,200 to 2,000 remaining in modern Japan. I always imagined a geisha to be a beautiful, fragile, soft creature, forced into a life of discipline, somewhat like slavery. I wonder where I got that idea from (insert Memoirs of a Geisha here)! It is hard to picture their place in the modern world. The Geisha is a historical figure, that is somehow still tangible and continuing to survive in the unique environment that makes Japan so different, as the Japanese continue to honour their traditions and
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