Copyright theage
But while the city is increasingly popular with tourists wanting to explore beyond the Tokyo-Kyoto-Osaka golden triangle, its smaller size allows a more intimate and authentic glimpse into traditional Japan, with local crafts, gastronomy and history proudly on display. Only two from our group have chosen to participate in the kimono activity during our free day exploring Takayama, and I welcome the company to share giggles and gasps as we are trussed and swaddled like burritos into our robes, secured with a lung-compressing obi sash and obijime cord. Decorative hairclips, delicate handbags, toe socks and wooden geta (elevated flip-flops) complete the picture, transforming two middle-aged Western women into objects of breathtaking beauty. “Now you can wander around for photographs,” our tour guide Nobu tells us, offering to be our official paparazzi enroute. “How long do we have?” I ask, counting down the minutes until I can once again breathe freely. “All day,” he informs us. “You need to return the outfit by 5pm.” Ummm … let’s say an hour, shall we? That’s about my limit for public humiliation, with my friend and I quickly becoming the focus of every tourist happy snap, asked to pose on the iconic red Nakabashi bridge, under trees and in doorways of sake breweries as we shuffle along cobbled Sannomachi Street. While I know we look amazing, the attention quickly wears thin – life in the public eye as a geisha isn’t easy.
