Some Surprising News!

It appears as though Satoharu (里春) of Kawahisa (川久) in Miyagawa Cho will be having her erikae! And, it’s Thursday, February 9th! I’ll keep you posted on any new developments ^^

Satoharu (里春) of Kawahisa (川久) in Miyagawa Cho is now wearing sakko! It is still unknown at this time whether she’ll turn her collar and become a geiko or leave the profession. 

Back To Back!

Yesterday was Masano (満彩野) of Man (まん) in Gion Higashi’s misedashi, and today we’re celebrating Chikasome (千賀染) of Komaya (駒屋) in Miyagawa Cho’s misedashi! Not many pictures are in yet, but this blog has a lovely picture of her with her escort, former geiko Toshihana who now works for the kenban, and some mokuroku. You can also see some more mouroku here. おめでとう千賀染ちゃん!

A final gift to everyone who has been a fan of Fukunae (ふく苗) of Shigemori (しげ森) in Miyagawa Cho. A user on Instagram posted this image of her dancing last year as a maiko along with an image of her during her hiki iwai. The paper she’s holding was given out during her final round of thanks to the entire Miyagawa Cho community and marks her end as a member of the karyukai.  The hiki iwai paper itself lists her geimei (ふく苗 - Fukunae) and her real name (仁美). Her real name uses kanji that both have literally hundreds of ways to pronounce them, so since I’m not 100% sure of her circumstances I won’t write the English equivalent.  It’s a lovely parting gift for a maiko who was very much loved both inside and outside of Kyoto.

Weekend Update 16/10

Lots of news has come out of the karyukai this week and I’ve been busy too! Karyukai News -Three new erikae announcements have come out this week! They include Chiyoko (知余子) of Nishimura (西村) and Ichitomi (市十美) of Nakagishi (中支志) in Gion Kobu, who will likely be having their erikae together next month, and Toshisumi (とし純) of Komaya (駒屋) in Miyagawa Cho who will be having her erikae in January 2017. This is great news, especially for Gion Kobu who hasn’t had an erikae since December 2015 (an unusually long time for them). Blog News -Not too much has been done on the outside this week except for answering many interesting questions. (Thanks for sending so many!) -The majority of my time has been spent completing the Sister Relationship tab. The biggest achievement so far was the completion of the Ichi line of Pontocho. This involved combing through every Kamogawa Odori program possible, which spanned from 1920 to 2014. I used Liza Dalby’s guide as a reference to see who connects where, but either I couldn’t locate some of the names that she talked about or she wasn’t aware that multiple people had held the name before and/or during the time of her list. Needless to say, it took many, many hours to compile, but it’s been fun since I haven’t been able to find any guides like it in English or Japanese. The only connections that I have to do now are for Miyagawa Cho.  -Mylo’s Pick of The Week goes to Fukuno (ふく乃) of Kawayoshi (河よ志) in Miyagawa Cho for the lovely composition and serene look.

One More For The Erikae Train!

It seems as though erikae announcements are exploding right now, and there’s another name to add to the list! Toshisumi (とし純) of Komaya (駒屋) in Miyagawa Cho will be having her erikae in early 2017! This is fantastic news as most Komaya maiko don’t turn their collars and Miyagawa Cho could use some new geiko ^^ You can check out the announcement here.

Weekend Update 9/10

After the dances finish in both the spring and the fall we begin to see an influx of misedashi and erikae once again. As of a few days ago, the wheels have begun turning again! Karyukai News -Fukunae (ふく苗) of Shigemori (しげ森) in Miyagawa Cho left the profession today (October 9th) after completing her apprenticeship. -Katsuhina (佳つ雛) of Odamoto (小田本) in Gion Kobu is now tying her obiage! Her erikae is expected to be in November. Blog News -Geiko parts have begun to be added to the Anatomy of Maiko and Geiko tab. -Mylo’s Pick of The Week goes to Fukunae (ふく苗) of Shigemori (しげ森) in Miyagawa Cho in appreciation for her hard work and dedication throughout her career. -I’ve been working on a new tab tentatively known as Sister Relationships. So far most of Gion Kobu is completed with almost all known matches recorded (this took two days!). You can check a sneak peek of it here.

Farewell Fukunae!

It’s been speculated for months now that Fukunae (ふく苗) of Shigemori (しげ森) in Miyagawa Cho was going to quit. Well, today it’s been confirmed by Shigemori themselves. Her final performance will be in Miyagawa Cho’s Mizuekai (みずゑ会) this week. Fukunae was the fourth member of the Shigemori okiya and has been a maiko for 4 years and 8 months, so she leaves after completing her full apprenticeship. She can continue on with her head held high, knowing that she accomplished so much during her time in Miyagawa Cho. May she have the best of luck in whatever she decides to do next ^^ You can read the announcement here.

Another Star Is Gone

Today there’s been confirmation that Miena (美恵菜) of Ishihatsu (石初) in Miyagawa Cho has retired after being a maiko for 5½ years. She seemed like such a wonderful dancer and was always bright on every occasion. She can leave knowing that she’s accomplished so much and was a true maiko of Kyoto. Blogger Toshikame-Chan has done a lovely two part tribute to her on her blog: http://tiger123.exblog.jp/22918923/ http://tiger123.exblog.jp/22923391/