Togura-Kamiyamada has historically been the onsen resort town that people stay at after a pilgrimage to the Zenkoji Temple in Nagano City. Guests come to soak in the onsen baths and throw a big banquet, call in some geisha and have an exciting night before returning to their normal lives. Today, various organizations that hold their banquets here have the geisha come to liven things up. Normally the geisha come for a minimum of 2 hours with most of the time spent chitchatting and pouring drinks for the guests. With this 30-minute Geisha Show, the geisha will perform some songs such as our area's traditional love song Kamiyamada Ko-uta, teach the group how to dance to the 'Tanko-bushi' (Coal-Miner) or similar song and have the guests join in dancing around the room. Then the geisha will challenge everyone to Konpira Funafuna or other geisha parlor games, followed by time for pictures with the geisha.
