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Yes, I figured you’d know about it. Are you a frequent shopper there?

姿なく 星さえ果てる 雲の森
水面に響く 八重の山影

sugata naku
hoshi sae hateru
kumo no mori
minamo ni hibiku
yae no yamakage

No shadow twinkles
and every star fades away
in the leafy clouds
if mountains of canticles
always whirl on the water

geen schaduw fonkelt
en de sterren vervagen
in het wolkenbos
als bergen van lofliedjes
op het water warrelen

花なき児 万の山に 向かう橋
茶屋の彩り 帳を照らす

hana naki ko
yorozu no yama ni
mukau hashi
chaya no irodori
tobari wo terasu

a flowerless child
simply waddles on the bridge
to all spirits’ hill
when the tea shop shines away
against the fog of reverie

een kind zonder bloemen
waggelt gewoon op de brug
naar de geestenheuvel
wanner de theewinkel mistig
tegen de mijmerij wegschijnt

I’m late to the conversation, but in the history classes I took at Sophia Univ. a few years ago, the red light district nearest to the treaty port was roughly where the baseball stadium is today. This is much closer than Eiraku-cho, although it may have moved to Eiraku-cho after the major fire that burned down most of the buildings in the stadium area. On the other hand, I don’t remember hearing anything about there being houses of ill repute in Takashima-cho 2-chome, that’s news to me.

You might be wondering why I’m replying to this blog post now. It so happens that I was flipping through a stack of old Yokosuka and Yokohama ehagaki in a store in Jimbocho today, and found a couple featuring women that said something like “building no. 9” in Yokohama. When I Googled the term, this site was one of the first that came up, a funny coincidence.

As far as why it’s hard to find good sources of info on them, it doesn’t fit well with the moral code of the time, whether it was the morality that Japan inherited from China or the Christianity that Western nations brought. The red light districts which received official blessing during the Edo Period, such as Yoshiwara and a couple in Osaka, were always located off the beaten path (Yoshiwara was the second, if memory is right, since Edo expanded to encompass the first one). While prostitution was accepted, the Shogun wanted it controlled in a confined area so it could be monitored. They were less accepting of unofficial red light districts, although they did exist—I vaguely remember one being at Fukagawa.

八雲鳴り 桜の枝垂れ 揺れる夢
枯れ葉の路に 萎えては光る

yakumo nari
sakura no shidare
yureru yume
kareha no michi ni
naetewa hikaru

the lilac willows
wave away with an ocean
of clouds’ ringing cups
if dreams fade away to loom
on the greyish lane of leaves

de lila wilgen
golven met een oceaan
van wolkenklokken
als de verloren dromen
het grijze laantje volgen

雪葵 雅に映る 忘れ潮
海原唄う 石垣の草

yuki aoi
miyabi ni utsuru
wasure jio
unabara utau
ishigaki no kusa

a snowy mallow
nobly floats around the tide
of oblivion’s sea
beside the melodious grass
on the watery blue stones

een sneeuwmalve
drijft edel rond de getij
van vergetelheid
naast het zoetklinkende gras
op de zeeblauwe stenen

星は去り 湧き水凍る 春の陰
木洩れ陽真似る かぐやの彩芽

hoshi wa sari
wakimizu kooru
haru no kage
komorebi maneru
kaguya no ayame

starry sparrows go
away from the frozen spring
in the shade of luck
when the lunar fairy plays
through the foliage pleasantly

sterrenmussen gaan
van de bevroren bron weg
in gelukschaduw
wanneer de maantoverfee
door de bladeren blij speelt

kame sawagi
minamo midareru
fuji no yume
yamiyo ni hibiku
murasaki no biwa

亀騒ぎ 水面乱れる 藤の夢
闇夜に響く 紫の琵琶

little turtles bray
on the spooky stormy pond
if the blue willow
dreams in the shadowy night
with a lute of amethyst

schildpadden balken
op de hevige vijver
als de blauwe wilg
in de onderwereld droomt
met een luit van amethist

緑舞う 望みの岸に 波は鳴く
物の怪の路 青馬走る

midori mau nozomi no kishi ni
nami wa naku
mononoke no michi
aouma hashiru

The foliage dances
around the cliff of good hope
or the lyric wave
to make blue horses gallop
on the boulevard of ghosts

bladeren dansen
rond het klif van goede hoop
of de leuke golf
en drijven blauwen paarden
op de spokenstraten aan

小舟咲き 星降る波に 映える窓
社は揺れて 雷萎える

kobune saki
hoshihuru nami ni
haeru mado
yashiro wa yurete
kaminari naeru

with flowering boats
on the wave of snowing stars
the window twinkles
when the wood of happiness
rocks to wipe the thundercloud

met bloemenboten
op de golf van sterrensneeuw
schittert het venster
als het bos van geluk wiegt
en de donderwolk wegvegt

静けさも 嵐を唄う 鴨川の
翼も狂れる 葵の波路

shizukesa mo
arashi o utau
kamogawa no
tsubasa mo hureru
aoi no namiji

silence sings the storm
around the ashy river
when little ducks sail
on mad mallows’ lunacy
like the soul of weird wings

stilte zingt de storm
door de asgrijse rivier
als kleine eenden
op de maangekke zielen
van vreemde vleugels zeilen

Have you seen the the collection of documentary photographs of former Edo Castle created by Ninagawa Noritane in 1871 with the cooperation of photographer Yokoyama Shozaburo and artist Takahashi Yuichi?

I am surprised that you did not quote from or cite the several tobacco pipe books written by Barney Suzuki, one of the most prolific researchers in Japan on this topic: barneytt@nifty.com.

Your article was a wonderful read. I came across it while staying in a 250-year-old house in a rural area of Japan, and it made the experience feel even more vivid. As the cold seeps through the wooden walls, it’s easy to imagine how people once lived in these homes.

Thank you for such a beautifully written and thoughtful piece. It truly added depth to my experience.