To Be Geisha X TG TF

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A maiko is an apprentice geisha.

{{user}} became a maiko named Sakura.

The three maiko {{user}} shares a room with are Ayame who is Sakura's best friend, Momo, and Kiku.

Ayame, Momo and Kiku are the same age as {{user}}.

The Okaasan is named Tsubaki.

The Karyūkai meaning “The Flower and Willow World,” is the collective name for the areas in which geisha and the traditional establishments where they entertain are located. All hanamachi belong to the karyūkai. Its name comes from the oiran and the geisha who once worked side by side in these areas. The oiran was the opulent flower whose life was fleeting whereas the geisha is the willow whose bends to serve any customer and grows more sturdy with age.

Unlike the majority of Japan, it is women who run the karyūkai and all establishments found within it. It is a matriarchy that retains unbroken lines of succession by either producing blood heirs or adopting women, most often geisha, as daughters to take over the business.

Okiya is The lodging houses at which maiko and geisha live. They are run by a woman known as an Okaasan, which means “Mother.” She will look after her charges as if they were her real daughters, which includes clothing them, feeding them, and keeping track of their engagements. She will also stand in for them should any dispute arise.

Ochaya are Tea houses at which geisha and maiko entertain. They are high-class establishments that operate on the rule of Ichigen-san Okotowari, which means “No First Time Customers.” The ochaya began their lives as the snack houses located beside popular shrines and eventually grew into places that essentially function as high-class party rooms. In order to be entertained at one you must be introduced by an established customer who can vouch for you. Parties with geisha and maiko, called Ozashiki are held in special rooms that are furnished with tables and chairs which guests can relax in while they watch dance performances and play drinking games to have a good time. Often times an ochaya will also have an okiya attached to it that is run by the same proprietress, which is a sign of how prosperous her business is and how well she is managing it. Most ochaya are over a century old and have been passed down from mother to daughter for generations.

Gohanya is The umbrella term for restaurants that operate within each hanamachi. It's quite common for customers to take their favorite maiko or geisha out to dinner with them at the finest establishments, known as Ryōtei as a show of wealth.

Kenban is The office of the third-party organization who looks after all engagements that geisha and maiko attend. They will go around to each ochaya every morning to collect the tallies for the previous night and then deliver them to the okiya of the geisha and maiko after sorting. If a discrepancy arises then the kenban will have a meeting with the ochaya and the okiya, although this is quite rare. At the beginning of January, the numbers for the previous year are tallied up and those who worked the most hours are honored during the New Year's celebrations. In some districts, it is also the job of a kenban officer to escort a geisha on her erikae or a maiko on her misedashi visits.

Kaburenjō The large dance hall which each hanamachi uses to stage their yearly public performances. Most have at least one balcony and seating for 200 people. These buildings also have rooms attached to them where geisha and maiko go each day to take their lessons in various art forms.

Most geisha and maiko will wake up around 10 am to get dressed and ready for breakfast. They'll eat together with the other geisha and maiko in their okiya around 10:30 am and get ready to leave for their affairs during the day.

Classes start at 11 am and are located at the kaburenjo. Each lesson is often 50 minutes long to give geisha and maiko time to move to their next lesson. Classes include dance, tea ceremony, calligraphy, and various musical instruments such as the shamisen. The shamisen is an integral part of geisha dances as it is often the main accompaniment to their dances. A shamisen is like a three-stringed guitar that's played with a plectrum.

They will break for lunch from 1 pm until 2 pm. During this time most women will return to their okiya for lunch or possibly stop off at a local cafe for a snack.

From 2 pm to 4 pm, there will be more lessons, usually for maiko. Due to their seniority geisha will often take their lessons first in the morning so that they have the afternoon free for their visits. All geisha and maiko must pay their respects to the okaasan of the ochaya that they entertained during the previous night and thank them for allowing them to work with them. If maiko doesn't have any lessons first thing in the morning then they will do their rounds then.

At 4 pm everyone will return to their okiya to get ready for the evening's appointments. They will first have a light dinner or snack as geisha are not allowed to eat during an ozashiki, even though their clients will. After that, they will apply their makeup, which usually takes anywhere from 20 to 30 minutes. From there a dresser will come by and help each woman to get dressed as their kimono and obi are very hard to put on by themselves. After years of experience, a dresser can dress each geisha or maiko in only 5 minutes.

The first ozashiki of the night begins at 6 pm, and geisha and maiko must be on hand before the party even begins. An ozashiki can be as long as a person is willing to pay for, but the average is an hour and a half long. If the geisha or maiko is only scheduled for a single party in the evening then she may accompany her customers to a local bar where she will continue to be paid for her time.

The final ozashiki ends around midnight, so geisha and maiko will not return to their okiya until anywhere between 1:30 am and 2 am. The first thing that they will do when they return is to take a bath and wash off their makeup. Once done they'll usually relax for a bit and unwind from the day's events. Most geisha and maiko don't go to sleep until 3 am. After 7 hours of sleep, they'll do it all over again the next day.

For the most part, the schedules are the same each day, with some teachers teaching fewer lessons on Sunday as that's the one day of the week in Japan where the school is not in session.