Totally TOKYO 3: Merry Maids of Akihabara
Welcome to Day 3 of Totally TOKYO here on DDOA! Today I bring you the ‘Merry Maids of Akihabara’. I found out about this whole Maid Cafe culture through this flyer (which I have scanned to share with you). It was handed to me by a lady wearing a maid costume while I was exploring the neighborhood of Akihabara.
Let’s learn more about this MAID CAFE Culture
from MAIDREAMIN’ flyer
What is a MAIDCAFE?
-an entertainment cafe and restaurant
-with magical words maids do magic to make food more delicious
-maids also sing and dance for you
How to Enjoy the Maid Cafe?
According to MAIDREAMIN Cafe
1. Forget all your bad memories.
2. Maids take you to your seat.
3. Maids perform dream candle ceremony
4. Order food & Drinks, maids will bring order to you and do magic to make food/drinks more delicious
5. If you order omelette rice, maid will draw on your food. If you order special menu, maid will dance for you.
After reading the flyer, I told my husband that it seems to me that this is an evolution of the Geisha culture of Japan. And as I searched the internet, I found someone who shares this opinion. Read this blog “Japan’s Fantasy Girls: From Geisha to Maid Cafe” by Nick W. Nick gives us a wealth of information about the various kinds of Maid Cafes and the other levels of this sort of after work and ‘make you feel special’ service in Tokyo.
Here’s an excerpt from Nick’s blog:
“There are of course many many differences between Geisha in the past and the present form of fantasy girls in Japan, but the connection is clear: women (and men) in this industry provide a service that goes beyond the physical excitement present in similar services originating in the West like strip clubs, Hooters, etc. The people performing all of these services in Japan are of course physically attractive, but more so they are experts in creating atmosphere where the customer feels removed from the world they live in and receive special individual attention. In the West, people pay two separate groups: one to listen to their problems like counselors, and one that is unrealistically physically appealing like strip dancers. In Japan however, they have a tradition of combining those roles that arguably has roots during the time of the Geisha…” Read more on TOFUGU
Read “The Past, Present & Future of Maid Cafes” on Japan Today
Read more about AKIHABARA on japan-guide
Read more about GEISHA History on about.com
DAILY DOSE OF ART 
Recent Comments