Miyako Odori

Besides cherry blossoms, April in Kyoto is also synonymous with the Miyako Odori at the Gion Kaburenjo Theatre. This popular event is a spring dance performance by geiko and maiko. Some of the other geisha districts in town (Pontocho, Kamishichiken, Miyagawacho) have similar spring dance events, but none are as big as Gion's.

This year's Miyako Odori was based on the Tale of Genji (源氏物語, Genji Monogatari) because 2008 marks the 1000th anniversary of this classic novel.

We took our college friend, Hunter, to see this breathtaking performance. To make sure that he overdosed on Japanese culture, we got tickets which included a tea ceremony that was prepared and served by geisha! The tea ceremony wasn't as formal or as intimate as the ones I've had in my class, but having a geisha involved was really cool. We also got to keep the plates that our sweets were served on as a special souvenir.

The show had eight scenes, each with beautiful new scenery and colorful costumes. Along the sides of the stage were musicians singing and playing the shamisen, flute and drums.

An amusing advertisement about this event claimed that "you might feel like you have come out of a dream when the show is over. It will surely become one of your most spectacular memories of Japan!" We ruthlessly mocked this ad. But, in the end, it turned out to be right.