Spring already?!

Spring has always been a season of renewal for Shinmachi. In the four years its been around, we've always been quiet once the first snow fell. But when the ice begins to melt and those first flowers bloom, the group becomes more active and invigorated. And I, for one, am excited to start wearing my spring kimono!

Okay, so it may not be spring in North America or Europe, where most of our members are from; but we use an old Japanese calendar for our group. This lunar based one was introduced in the middle to late 1600s and was used until the late 1800s. We've never been really strict on the era we focus on with our courtesan and actor role playing, except to say it encompasses a few hundred years ranging from the early 1600s to the middle 1800s. 

Roughly 200 hundred years is a lot to cover in a RP group, but there's a method to our madness. The abilities, appearances, and artistic accomplishments of courtesans differed greatly from era to era. People join Shinmachi for a variety of reasons; some really enjoy the tayuu and kabuki connection, so that's why we begin in the early 1600s, when the courtesans performed on stage. That's about the time the real Shinmachi opened, so it makes sense.

Many students join to wear oiran kimono and hair; the yoko hyogo style with all of the hair combs and long, dangling chains and the large box obi are preferred to the less ornate style of the tayuu. These early keisei had simpler hair, smaller obi and less extravagant kimono. So, we stretch our focus to include the years when those were popular, namely the 1800s.

Shinmachi focuses on the 1600s - 1800s for our RP, which fits really well with the use of the lunar calendar. While you may think its winter (or summer, depending on your hemisphere), we're basking in the rejuvenating warmth and beauty of spring in SecondLife. Why don't you join us?