On the fourth day, I woke up feeling so much more rested. We met up with our guide, and took a train to the suburbs to see the Fushimi Inari Shrine. The earliest structures of the shrine were built in 711, and the gates climb up the Inari Mountain. I remembered seeing the shrine in the movie Memoirs of a Geisha, and loved the orange color. Interestingly, each of the gates is sponsored by a company or family, and is a surprisingly sustainable financial model.
After walking through the shrine, we walked through several neighborhoods, including finding a store selling the cutest cookies.
In the evening, we went to the Gion District to go Geisha Spotting. There is a house where all of the geishas and maikos visit at the start of their evening, so by standing on one corner we were able to see many of them. Maikos start their training to become geishas at 15 years old, and undergo years of training on dance, playing music and entertainment. There is a western misconception that geishas are a form of prostitution but it is truly an entertainment profession.
