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Saganoyu Cafe

August 28, 2023 By Michael Lambe

日本語はこちら

If you’re in the Saga area, the cafe Saganoyu is a pleasant spot for lunch or a cup of coffee. Originally built as a public bathhouse in 1923, the building has been thoroughly renovated and was reopened as a cafe in 2006. You can still see the original tiling on the floors and the faucets along the walls.

Here’s what we had. Miu chose a cheese curry…

…which she washed down with an iced “Island milk tea” – so-named because it contains coconut milk.

And I had a peperoncino with anchovy and nanohana (rapeseed flowers) …

…with a refreshing framboise squash.

Everything was tasty and the service was good too. Saganoyu is not so cheap, but the Saga/Arashiyama area is rather touristy so cheap places are hard to find…

Saganoyu is located a short walk south of the JR Saga/Arashiyama Station. Here is a most convenient map. Check out the Saganoyu website more details and for their online shop: http://www.sagano-yu.com/
Open: 11.00 – 18.00 (Last orders: 17.30)
Telephone: 075-882-8985

This article first posted in March, 2014. Updated and reposted in August, 2023.
All text and images by Michael Lambe. All rights reserved.

Dog Cafe

August 25, 2023 By Michael Lambe

日本語はこちら

Dog Cafe
is one of Kyoto’s “wan-chan” cafes catering to all good dogs and their walkers. A spacious establishment, on the ground floor you can browse among a huge array of dog-related products for your favorite pooch, or dog-themed goods for dog-loving humans.

The cafe has a menu that caters for both bipedal customers and their four-legged friends. For dogs the scooby-snacks include: cake, cookies and milk, and for peeps: a full drinks menu (coffees, smoothies, teas, beers etc.) and delicious home-made cakes at ¥500 a pop. Check out the pictures below.

Dog Cafe is on Instagram and has an official website here: https://dogcafe.co.jp/
Open: 11:00~19:00 (Last orders: 18:00)
Closed: Monday and Tuesday.
Tel: 075-257-3865.

This article first posted in June, 2008. Updated and reposted in August, 2023.
All text and images by Michael Lambe. All rights reserved.

Cafe Kocsi

August 5, 2023 By Michael Lambe

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This is a really lovely cafe on Aneyakoji Dori. If you’re in the mood for a sandwich and you are in the Kawaramachi area, I definitely recommend it. There’s plenty of space, lots of comfy chairs, a peaceful bookish atmosphere and a nice view from the windows over the tiled roofs of Kyoto. Check out the pictures below:

They have a full bar, and refreshments menu alongside a food menu of soups, sandwiches, cakes etc. We had the sandwiches and they were super tasty. The bread lined up in the showcase is home-baked fresh each day. And the dressing they put on their salads is something else.

To find it go north, one block from Sanjo Dori on Tominokoji Dori and you’ll find a nice white clean looking building on the corner with Aneyakoji. カフェ・コチ is on the second floor. Here is a map.

Opening Hours: 12:00 ~ 18:00
Closed: Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays.
Tel: 075-212-7411

This article first posted in September, 2008. Updated and reposted in August, 2023.
All text and images by Michael Lambe. All rights reserved.

Ran Hotei Cafe – Vintage Taishō Romance & Excellent Cake

July 25, 2023 By Michael Lambe

日本語はこちら

One day I took a walk over to the Sanjo-kai Shōtengai shopping arcade and popped into Randy Channell’s machiya cafe Ran Hotei.

Randy is well known as a master of Japanese tea ceremony, and he does teach a few tea ceremony classes at Ran Hotei. But if you are not interested in tea ceremony, that’s ok, Ran Hotei is essentially a cafe, a place to relax, with coffee, tea and other standard beverages plus some damn fine cake.

On my visit I had a coffee and cake set. It was a maple chiffon cake, not too heavy and not too light and tasted excellent.

Randy opened the cafe in 2007, after having the building, a traditional wooden townhouse, or machiya, thoroughly renovated. He explained that he was looking for an art-deco, “Taishō Roman” kind of style when decorating the interior. Taishō refers to the Taishō Era (1912-1926), a short period of liberalism in Japanese politics and culture, which in popular memory stands in sharp contrast to the chaotic drive towards modernism of the Meiji Era that preceded it and the more militaristic early Shōwa Era that followed.  “Roman” is short for romantic, so essentially Taishō Roman stands for a kind of vintage romance.

The stained glass doorway above was found for him by our old friend Rob Mangold.

Take a pew – the seating above was originally from a church!

Or if you prefer you can kick off your shoes and relax on a tatami floor.

Randy has decorated the machiya very nicely with some lovely items. Check out that beautiful chandelier.

The Ran of Ran Hotei is from Randy’s name and the Hotei comes from the popular figure above. Randy has an extensive collection of Hotei statues and images, over 3000, but the one above he tells me, is his “treasure”. Hotei is a folkloric figure representing contentment and generosity.

Plus points: Ran Hotei is non-smoking and it is also officially a “Dog Cafe” meaning you can pop in here after taking Rover out for walkies. If you are lucky, you may get to meet Snow, above, so named because she is black (?), but perhaps also because she is すなお, a very calm, gentle natured dog.Randy is a very welcoming and friendly chap and he has been in Kyoto long enough to have a few stories under his obi. Before he was a tea master, he was a practitioner of various martial arts. I was very glad to meet him and am looking forward to getting to know him better. Mostly though I just want to go back and have another piece of that cake.

Ran Hotei is situated on the south side of the Sanjo Arcade which lies between Horikawa and Senbon Streets. Here is a MAP.
TEL: 075-801-0790
Opening hours: 11:30 〜 20:00 (until 23:00 on Fridays)
Closed Thursdays
No Smoking
Check out Randy’s online tea shop here: https://ranhotei.thebase.in/

Original article posted October, 2014. Updated and reposted July, 2023.
Text and images by Michael Lambe. All rights reserved.

Ain Soph Journey Kyoto (Formerly Matsuontoko) – Vegan Burger Cafe

July 20, 2023 By Michael Lambe

日本語はこちら

Update 2023: Matsuontoko is now known as Ain. Soph Journey Kyoto (catchy!) — but it is still a vegan restaurant serving delicious burgers, curries and kara-age!

Though there are quite a large number of vegetarian establishments in Kyoto, most of them are located in the north of the city, and the few there are in the city center tend to sell nothing that isn’t healthy and nutritious. Good vegan junk food is pretty hard to come by. There used to be a branch of Speakeasy on Shijo that did a passable veggie burger, but that closed down back in 2010. Since then our vegan brethren have been denied the delights of fast and convenient processed treats at a convenient location and forced to endure a steady diet of tofu and wholegrain rice. No more! Vegan cafe Matsuontoko Ain Soph. Journey Kyoto is here to save the day, slap bang in the center of town, with a fine array of vegan fake-meats!

So convincing are these fake-meats that one of Mewby’s friends was half-way through her “kara-age” before she realised it wasn’t chicken at all. And that was only because Mewby told her.

“Really,” Mewby told me. “You’ll be amazed.”
“Well, alright then.” I said. So I went. And here’s my order.

How good was it? Very good. The bread was actually really nice too. I was entirely satisfied. But I decided to pig out on onion rings anyway. They were nice sweet onions and non too greasy.

And they also had this lovely little cup of tofu ice-cream, cream and vegan brownies.

In short, whether you are vegan or no, if have a hankering for fast food at a reasonable price, Matsuontoko Ain Soph. Journey Kyoto is the place to go.

Ain Soph Journey Kyoto is just east of Shinkyogoku, three streets up from Shijo. Here is a map. Check the website for other items on the menu. There are a lot of choices.

Ain Soph Journey Kyoto has some slightly complicated business hours.
Normal business hours are as follows:
Open:
11:30~17:00 (Last Orders: 16:00), 18:00 ~ 20.00 (Last Entry: 18.45, Last Orders: 19.00)
But sometimes they are only open for lunch and then business hours are as follows:
Open: 10.00 ~ 16.00 (Last Orders: 15.00)
Holidays are irregular.
Tel: 075-251-1876

Original article posted February, 2013. Updated July 2023.
Text and images by Michael Lambe. All rights reserved. 

Lush Life

July 19, 2023 By Michael Lambe

日本語はこちら

This is a real find to be treasured. An unassuming little café near Demachiyanagi station, I must have walked past Lush Life a thousand times before finally noticing it one day, stepping inside, and bursting out laughing.

Outside, it just looks like your average run-of-the-mill café. But inside – it’s so nice! Like a little wooden jazz-lover’s den, with one wall decorated floor to ceiling with record covers and a nice cozy counter to sit at.

Everyday, there’s a simple but tasty “dish of the day” if you want something to eat. Or you can enjoy some of the luscious looking homemade cake. On the day I visited lunch was chicken curry (the owner was kind enough to make me a vegetarian bean curry instead) which I thoroughly enjoyed while listening to Nina Simone singing her Backlash Blues. And the coffee? That made me laugh too, because it was so good! Better than how I like it!

Here are some more pictures, to put you in the mood.

With our Randy Weston tickets…

Lush Life (named after the jazz standard by Billy Strayhorn) has been open here since 1988, but its history dates back to earlier jazz cafés with different names and in different locations – all the way back to the first cafe “SugarHill” in 1966. Judging by the number of regular customers who have their “keep” coffee tickets tacked to the walls, I’d guess Lush Life will be around for a long time to come. Although, it’s a small shop, they have sponsored a number performances at Kyoto’s Kamigamo Shrine by the major jazz pianists Abdullah Ibrahim and the late great Randy Weston. I was fortunate enough to attend two of Randy Weston’s performances at Kamigamo and on both occasions I was blown away by his vitality, profound talent and deep, deep, joyful tunes.

This happy little place is open from 12:00 ~ 22:00 everyday except Tuesdays. Tel: 090-1909-0199.
You can find it to the side of the taxi rank just opposite the Eizan exit of Demachiyanagi Station. Here is a map.

Text and images by Michael Lambe. All rights reserved. 

Cafe Bibliotic Hello!

July 17, 2023 By Michael Lambe

日本語はこちら

Situated on Nijo/Yanagiyabamba, “Cafe Bibliotic Hello” is a converted old machiya, one of the traditional old wooden townhouses of Kyoto. Bring a book with you or just grab one of the many off the walls. Here you can enjoy coffees, teas, cakes, pastries or grab some dinner if you are really hungry. They do some pretty awesome sandwiches but one night I treated myself to the day’s special. It was pleasing both to the eye and tongue.

Spinach & tomato pasta with whitefish

I also recommend the “Old Fashioned” a kind of fruit crumble with ice-cream.


The atmosphere here is super relaxed, and unlike Starbucks you aren’t expected to leave or order more as soon as your coffee is finished. Here are some pictures.

Sitting here, surrounded by lights and books and old wood is a balm to the soul.

To find it just head west on Nijo from Teramachi and look out for the ridiculously oversized palm leaves. Here’s a MAP
Cafe Bibliotic Hello! on Instagram.
Open every day: 11:30 ~ 23:00
Tel: 075-231-8625

This article was first posted in July 2007, then updated and reposted in July 2023. Some items on the menu may well have changed in the interim!

Text and images by Michael Lambe. All rights reserved. 

Les Freres Moutaux

July 14, 2023 By Michael Lambe

日本語はこちら

Les Freres Moutaux is a popular bakery in Iwakura, a quiet residential area of ​​Kyoto.

Previously, they also had a very nice branch with a cafe on Aburakoji Dori that sold all kinds of tasty meals  – but that branch has now GONE.

From white bread and baguettes to sweet buns, croissants and scones, there are many types of bread on sale. And all of them are top knotch when it comes to flavor, texture, and the heady, bready aroma of baked dough, so you might have some trouble choosing between them.

You should also watch out for the showcase of temptation which is filled with all kinds of colorful cakes and pastries. And answering the call of sweet-toothed fans from afar, baked sweets and cakes can also be ordered online.

Les Freres Moutaux is a two-minute walk from Kino Station on the Eizan Kurama Line. Here is a map showing it’s location.

The dearly departed Aburakoji branch

Check out the official website and online shop here: Les Freres Moutaux
Phone: 075-724-3299
Business hours: 9:00-19:00
Closed: Thursdays

Text and images by Michael Lambe. All rights reserved. 

Salut Ya

July 14, 2023 By Michael Lambe

日本語はこちら

さるぅ屋 is a cafe/bar/diner in a lovely old renovated machiya on Imadegawa. The food menu concentrates on burgers, sandwiches and curries and is generally pretty meaty. As I don’t do the meat thing, I settled for an advocado and cottage cheese sandwich, expecting something bland and was surprised by its sweet deliciosity. And the bread! That was something else.

I finished off with chocolate cake and ice-cream — smashing!

Below are some more pictures and you can see some pictures of the renovation process up here.

The drinks menu includes coffee, a full range of Yogi teas and fruit smoothies. As well as wine, cocktails and shochu, the bar also has Premium Malts on draft and also some Mexican and Belgian beers.

Salut Ya is super easy to get to from the Keihan Demachiyanagi Station. Take the number two exit and go east from the Family Mart on the corner of Imadegawa/Kawabata and Salut Ya is right there on your right. Here is a handy map.
Opening hours: 11:30~22:00 (Last orders for food: 21:00, and drinks: 21.30)
Telephone: 075-203-6552
Salut Ya on Instagram
On the way out I asked where they got their delicious bread from.
“レ・フレール・ムトウ”, she said.
And I said: “What?”
Next post: the bakery/cafe Les Freres Moutaux.

Text and images by Michael Lambe. All rights reserved. 

Quarirengue

July 12, 2023 By Michael Lambe

日本語はこちら
Here’s a nice quiet place for coffee and cake. Mewby and I found this cafe one Saturday and spent a pleasant afternoon there enjoying the tasty fare and the cosy mood and burying ourselves in our books. Tucked away down an old residential machiya alleyway it’s not a place you’d find by chance. It’s word of mouth that gets you there, and Quarirengue has clearly earned its reputation as a place of quiet retreat and fine confections.

Let’s take a look at those cakes shall we? This chocolate cake (自慢のクラシック・ショコラ – Classic Chocolate Pride) will set you back 750 yen. And yes folks, those are real blackberries you see on that plate.


[Read more…]

Deep Kyoto Walks Used for University English Reading Course

September 5, 2022 By Michael Lambe

I was delighted (and somewhat stunned) lately to learn that our book, Deep Kyoto: Walks, is being used as the basis of a university course here in Kyoto. The course at Kyoto Prefectural University is taught by Dr. Eleanor Yamaguchi and is called “欧米から見た京都”, or “Kyoto viewed from the West”. Eleanor, who has used supplemental materials on the course, such as our Deep Kyoto: Walks videos, writes, “I couldn’t think of a better book to read.”

Kyoto botanical gardens
Eleanor’s class wandering through Kyoto Botanical Gardens

She continues,

“It’s been an excellent book for the course. The students were worried at first that they might not be able to read it, but with the extra materials like the YouTube videos and then looking at the websites of the different temples and shrines that get mentioned, they found that they could really get into the text. They learned a lot about Kyoto and about the international residents that live here, so it was perfect! We read through a couple of chapters each week and picked up on some of the English phrases and the content of each chapter… Some of the students and myself followed some of the routes in the book and I got them to do their own walks and do their own written pieces…

…Using a regular book rather than a typical textbook helps the students to gain the confidence and see for themselves that they can read a regular book. They didn’t think they could at first, but they did! They are only 1st year students, but by setting them up with the confidence to read a normal book in English, by the time it comes to writing their graduation theses in English in their 4th year, they will hopefully have the confidence to tackle any book they might want to use for references!”

Apparently the last class of the semester involved a trip to the Kyoto Botanical Gardens which is conveniently close to the university campus, and is also featured in a very fine chapter of the book by Izumi Texidor Hirai. Inspired by the text, the students did their own walk and wrote about it. And by sheer happy chance they bumped into Judith Clancy, who was good enough to supply our book’s epilogue.

Kyoto Botanical Gardens zigzag bridge
The zigzag bridge in Kyoto Botanical Gardens which features in Izumi’s walk.

Well, when I learned of Eleanor’s class, I was quite moved to think of it playing such a part in young people’s education. It was never something I expected, but somehow I feel it has made the whole enterprise worth while. It also strikes me as a very innovative and imaginative way of teaching a reading class: getting the students outdoors, writing their own original pieces, and really living the text! Many thanks, Eleanor. You are clearly an excellent teacher!

*****************************************************************

Text by Michael Lambe & Eleanor Yamaguchi. Images by Eleanor Yamaguchi. All rights reserved.

eleanor yamaguchi

About Eleanor Yamaguchi

Eleanor Yamaguchi is an Associate Professor at Kyoto Prefectural University and a specialist in Japanese history and culture and UK-Japan relations. Her research covers the history of British-Japanese relations, the history of Japan (primarily late Edo/Meiji Periods), international relations and British history & culture (especially of the Victorian period). You can find her at her website, “Eleanor in Japan“, and on Twitter and Instagram.

DeepKyoto-cover-0423-final

About Deep Kyoto: Walks

Deep Kyoto: Walks is an independently produced anthology of meditative strolls, rambles, hikes and ambles around Japan’s ancient capital. All of the writers and artists involved in this project have lived and worked in Kyoto for many years and know it intimately. The book is in part a literary tribute to the city that they love and in part a tribute to the art of walking for its own sake. Deep Kyoto: Walks is available as a paperback or e-book from Amazon.com and Amazon.co.jp.

See also:

Kyoto Botanical Gardens by Izumi Texidor Hirai
On Foot in the Ancient Capital by Judith Clancy ~ An Exclusive Excerpt from Deep Kyoto: Walks

Rounding Off: The Kyoto Trail – An Excerpt from Deep Kyoto: Walks by Perrin Lindelauf

August 25, 2022 By Michael Lambe

Here’s a new excerpt from our book, Deep Kyoto: Walks. In this piece Perrin Lindelauf does a complete circuit of the Kyoto Trail, a hiking route through the mountains and forests that surround Kyoto. Along the way, pacing the ancient city’s perimeter and seeing it with fresh eyes, he finds his love for Kyoto rekindled…

Fushimi Inari Gates

Rounding Off by Perrin Lindelauf

“This book has covered a lot of ground now, from temples and shrines to the seedy streets of Kyoto’s nightlife and the deep shadows beneath the gables of fading machiya. Hoping to see something new of the city I have called home for nine years, I set out to take a good long walk on the Kyoto Trail. Just twenty years old, this route traverses the horseshoe of mountains that define Kyoto’s edges, linking shrines, temples and quiet villages while bobbing over most of the city’s notable peaks. For a city that lacks for central parks and can be overrun with tourists, the route is a refreshing step away from the crowds and noise. It will probably take several hundred years before the Kyoto Trail is venerable enough to attract the seeker of “Old Japan”—so much better for the rest of us.

About 75km in total, the circuit can seem intimidating, but the ease of access to nearly every section means that you can
split up the walk or linger at some of its sights without feeling rushed to meet a bus at the trailhead. There are four official sections: Higashiyama (25km) in the east, Kitayama East (18km) and Kitayama West (19km) in the north and Nishiyama (12km) in the western Arashiyama district. In my own experience on the Trail, I found that the official division was more a product of city hall’s development plan, rather than a consideration of what makes for a good hike.

Instead, I split my walking by theme: temples and shrines in Higashiyama (17km), the Mt. Hiei climb and descent to Kyoto’s villages (25km), a quiet stroll through Kitayama’s forests (15km) and the river valleys of Takao and Arashiyama (11km). While the course can be hiked from sign-post to sign-post, the maps available at any hiking shop in Kyoto are reassuring when you haven’t seen a marker in a while.”

***************************************************************************
Text and image by Perrin Lindelauf. All rights reserved.

To read the rest of this story, purchase your copy of Deep Kyoto: Walks. The book is now available as an e-book or paperback from Amazon.com, Amazon.co.jp, and Amazon.co.uk.

deep kyoto walks coverAbout Deep Kyoto: Walks

Deep Kyoto: Walks is an independently produced anthology of meditative strolls, rambles, hikes and ambles around Japan’s ancient capital. All of the writers and artists involved in this project have lived and worked in Kyoto for many years and know it intimately. The book is in part a literary tribute to the city that they love and in part a tribute to the art of walking for its own sake.

picture of perrin lindelauf

About Perrin Lindelauf

Perrin Lindelauf lived in Kyoto for 10 years, starting out as an English teacher and gradually working on a travel writing career that has taken him to some of the most distant corners of Japan, as well as the rest of Asia. Born in the Canadian Rockies and an avid hiker, he has written articles for several English publications, and is the author of National Geographic Traveler: Japan. He can be found online at www.perrinlindelauf.com and @perrinl on Twitter.

About the Kyoto Trail

To learn more about the Kyoto Trail, visit the official website here: kyoto-trail.net. A complete set of detailed maps for the Kyoto Trail (京都一周トレイル) has been published by the Kyoto Trail Association and can be bought at bookstores and hiking shops in Kyoto adn from Amazon.co.jp. There is now also an English language Kyoto Trail Guidebook which is available from Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk, and Amazon.co.jp.

Nishin Soba at Nama-soba Tokiwa

May 3, 2022 By Michael Lambe

Tokiwa is an unassuming noodle shop in central Kyoto that serves a huge variety of perfectly average canteen-style meals. It’s also the first place that I ever tasted nishin soba. And for that reason it holds a very special place in my heart.

tokiwa noodle shop
Nama-soba Tokiwa Noodle Shop on Teramachi Doori. Nama-soba means “fresh soba,” so not dried or frozen, and therefore full of flavor!

I can’t remember when exactly I first entered this place, but it must have been over a decade ago, just after I had first moved to Kyoto. My Japanese reading ability wasn’t so great at the time, but I could read hiragana, and the words にしんそば (nishin soba) were very clearly written in red on the shop front sign. I didn’t know what it was, but I decided to go in and give it a try. Reader, it was a revelation. And nishin soba has become one of my favorite Japanese dishes.

nishin soba at tokiwa restaurant
A nice hot steaming bowl of nishin soba goodness

So this is nishin soba: a big slab of dried herring, marinated in mirin (cooking sake) and soy sauce, and served on a bed of fresh buckwheat noodles with some chopped green noodles. It is a simple dish, and to my mind it is a little piece of heaven in a bowl. The sweetness of the mirin contrasts nicely with the deep savory flavor of the fish, while those fresh noodles and the light broth they are served in serve as a satisfying complement. Nishin soba is in fact a specialty of Kyoto, having been invented in another noodle restaurant (Matusba over by the Minamiza theater) back in the 19th century. It’s not to everybody’s taste, but I find it quite magical.

Tokiwa restaurant interior
The interior of Tokiwa

As for the shop “Tokiwa”, the place has a real Showa era vibe going on with its simple furnishings and wall-mounted TV. At the front of the shop, it says that Tokiwa was established in Meiji 11. That’s 1878 folks – this place is historic. I believe it is now run by the 4th or 5th generation of the family that established it. This is not unusual in Kyoto, but still I find it hard not to be impressed.

With its unremarkable appearance it would be very easy to walk past this store and never even notice it is there…

You might feel a little intimidated going into a tiny local place like this, but don’t be. Just walk in and someone will ask you how many people you are and then direct you to an available table. They have English and Chinese menus if you need them, and of course you don’t have to eat nishin soba. They have all kinds of soba and udon noodle or rice dishes available and economical set meals. You can see some plastic food models in the window to give you an idea of what is available. There’s quite a variety, but I can’t really recommend any of the other dishes because I’ve never tried them. For me this is a sacred spot where I can only eat nishin soba. And having tasted something so nourishing and flavorful, why would I want anything else?

Yata-dera Temple
Tokiwa is located beside Yata-dera Temple

Tokiwa is open from 11.00 till 16.00 and closed on Wednesdays. You can find it on the east side of Teramachi just above Sanjo and right beside (the very small) Yata-dera Temple. Here is a map showing it’s location.

Text and images by Michael Lambe. All rights reserved.



Maiko Masquerade: Crafting Geisha Girlhood in Japan by Jan Bardsley

May 15, 2021 By Michael Lambe

Disclosure: Some links on this page are affiliate links from which I will earn a commission. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

“Contemporary maiko are young women, typically between fifteen and twenty years of age, who have chosen to train in an arts profession with roots in the merchant culture and pleasure quarters of the Edo period (1603–1867). Their archaic hairstyles and kimono link them to this artistic past, easily identifying them as maiko. Although other geisha communities in Japan once had apprentices, too, the maiko is famously a Kyoto phenomenon today.”
— From Maiko Masquerade by Jan Bardsley

A new book from University of California Press should be of interest to our readers. A hat tip to the very excellent Shinpai Deshou for bringing it to my attention.

In Maiko Masquerade, the author Jan Bardsley turns her attention to maiko, as a cultural phenomenon. Maiko, she tells us, represent the “quintessential Kyoto girl”, and as the city’s mascot, the image of the maiko is ubiquitous in Kyoto, appearing on maps, posters, stationary, and souvenirs and even from the art atop a cappuccino or matcha latte “milky maiko smile at you”. Maiko are also the key protagonists in many Kyoto-based films, novels, TV dramas, and manga. It’s true that for tourists visiting Kyoto, maiko represent an ideal. Catching a glimpse of a maiko in one of the city’s flower districts, is a magical moment for many visitors, and cosplaying as maiko is a popular tourist activity too.

A major theme of this book is how the image of the maiko has changed from past depictions of maiko as the innocent victims of sexual exploitation, to contemporary 21st century depictions, largely created by women, which emphasize the maiko’s agency. Maiko today are seen as young women who have chosen their own path out of a yearning for the traditional world of kimono and dance. In a fundamental transformation, Bardsley explores how maiko have come “to symbolize the hardworking young artist, the chaste keeper of traditions, and the exemplary Japanese girl” and this in turn has “elevated the maiko’s Kyoto community as a site of deeply rooted cultural values.” By examining popular literature, films, manga and other media Bardsley investigates this archetype of Japanese girlhood as the locus of questions related to “personal choice, gender-appropriate roles, regional and ethnic identity, and the performance of idealized and contradictory femininities.”

Reviews

“Bardsley moves past the reverent tone of the cultural gatekeeper to present maiko through television, art, cosplay, autobiographical texts, and more. This book will be appealing to college instructors for its discussions of race, gender, and nationality; yet a broad audience of readers will also relish its richness and humor.”
–Laura Miller, Ei’ichi
Shibusawa-Seigo Arai Endowed Professor of Japanese Studies and Professor of History,University of Missouri-St. Louis

“This is the first book in English to focus on representations of the maiko, positioning these celebrated apprentice geisha at the fruitful intersection of gender studies, Japanese popular culture, research on childhood, and current debates over ‘Japaneseness’ and ‘tradition’ Maiko Masquerade is the rare scholarly study that is sophisticated, accessible, and a true delight to read.”
–William M. Tsutsui, author of
Japanese Popular Culture and Globalization

Maiko Masquerade: Crafting Geisha Girlhood in Japan by Jan Bardsley is available from Amazon.com, Amazon.co.jp, and Amazon.co.uk.

About the Author:
Jan Bardsley is Professor Emerita of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She is the author of Women and Democracy in Cold War Japan (SOAS Studies in Modern and Contemporary Japan, Bloomsbury, 2014) and The Bluestockings of Japan: New Women Fiction and Essays from Seitō, 1911-1916 (University of Michigan, Center for Japanese Studies, 2007) for which she was awarded the 2011 Hiratsuka Raichō Award by Japan Women’s University.

She is co-editor with Laura Miller of Manners and Mischief: Gender, Power, and Etiquette in Japan (University of California Press, 2011) and Bad Girls of Japan (Palgrave, 2005) and co-producer/director with Joanne Hershfield of the documentary, Women in Japan: Memories of the Past, Dreams for the Future (2002).

The recipient of several campus teaching awards, Bardsley regularly taught the course, “Geisha in History, Fiction, and Fantasy” at UNC-Chapel Hill from 2001 to 2018 and presented talks on geisha to university and community audiences across the U.S. In a recent blog post she relates how questions her students asked her during that course inspired her latest book.



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