A closer look
Kyoto officials recently passed a strict ban forbidding tourists from entering the private alleys of the historic Gion district because foreigners were relentlessly chasing, harassing, and aggressively photographing actual geishas like deranged paparazzi. These traditional entertainers were having their expensive kimonos torn and were being cornered in dark streets by grown adults who somehow forgot that Japan is a functioning society and not a massive, interactive cultural theme park designed entirely for their amusement. It takes a truly breathtaking level of obnoxious western entitlement to travel to a city renowned for its ancient etiquette and deeply rooted politeness just to act like an absolute feral raccoon with a DSLR camera
