TOKYO - Her face creased with age and her hearing faltering, 98-year-old Kokin is proud to have dedicated her life to being a geisha, feted by men for her charm, wit and beauty.
But the world's oldest geisha also mourns a time before World War Two when Japan's geisha districts would burst to life as soon as the sun had set -- geishas in silk kimonos would rush by rickshaw to "ryotei" restaurants where they would entertain wealthy men at parties that went on until the wee hours.
These days the streets of geisha districts are quiet in Japan's neon-light cities where nightlife is more about dance clubs, hostess bars and karaoke joints than traditional Japanese entertainment, leaving many geishas nostalgic and unemployed.
"Customers long ago had so much to talk about," said Kokin, who only uses her stage name as is customary among geishas.
"The customers now, young people, they don't have anything to talk about with us. They go straight to karaoke."
Kokin, who wears a green kimono with a pink sash and freshly coiffured hair, still plays the three-stringed shamisen and sings classical songs at parties in the geisha district of Atami, near Tokyo.
She has no children to take care of her in her old age. But she still has memories of her heyday as a geisha, when men hired her by the time it took for an incense stick to burn out.
"I would be cooling myself on a bench in the summer with nothing to do, and someone would ask me if I was free and offer to pay for one incense stick," recalled Kokin, who likes to be called "Kokin neesan" (older sister).
"People would ask for me, even if it was just for an hour," added Kokin, whose photos graced newspapers across Japan when she turned 98 in September.
These days, there are only a few geishas left in a fading profession in which female entertainers sing, dance and engage in witty conversation at dinner parties for exorbitant prices.
Geisha numbers across Japan peaked at 80,000 in 1928 around when Kokin began her career, but now only 1,000 are left. In Tokyo, just 300 are left.
Contrary to perceptions that geishas are prostitutes, they are entertainers. While some in the past had patrons, and perhaps married them, most now live independently on modest incomes.
With their clientele of elite businessmen and powerful politicians shrinking, geishas are grappling with the need to branch out of their exclusive, so-called "flower and willow world" and look for new clients such as tourists and even women.
NEAR EXTINCTION
An economic downturn in the 1990s forced businessmen to cut back on entertainment expenses, while high-profile scandals in recent years have made politicians eschew excessive spending.
A dinner can cost around 80,000 yen (354 pounds) per head, depending on the venue and the number of geishas present.
But even before the 90s, men were steadily giving up on late-night parties at "ryotei", restaurants with traditional straw-mat tatami rooms where geishas entertain, in favour of the modern comforts of hostess bars and karaoke rooms.
As the number of men who have been entertained by geishas' dwindle, the profession has scrambled to survive.
