It's not easy, or cheap, to spot a Kyoto geisha

KYOTO, Japan — A rice-paper door slides open on a dark street. Two men in suits and briefcases enter. A door slides shut. All that's left is a porch light and silence.

That is all nosy tourists might see in the Gion district of Kyoto, Japan. Despite interest raised by the film "Memoirs of a Geisha," your chance of running into a real live geisha is small. Why?

Discretion is a geisha's middle name. You can't just walk into a teahouse or club; they're private. In addition, practitioners of the elaborate ancient art of entertaining men are few in number. By some estimates there are only 100 geisha in all of Kyoto. Executives can't afford their company. Young women don't see it as a practical 21st-century career.

However, if you know where to look, you can brush against the geisha world.

In the Gion district, you can visit several sites mentioned in Arthur Golden's book "Memoirs of a Geisha" (Knopf, $26.95): a hair shop, a restaurant and a kimono store. You might see geisha or their maiko apprentices quickly making their way down the streets of the Pontocho and surrounding lanes, although their pace, even in kimonos, can be faster than your camera can catch.

You possibly could catch a glance at what looks like a geisha at a shrine or street corner, but she probably is a model hired to pose with tourists.

Most sightseeing tours visit the Gion district of Kyoto. If you want to meet a geisha, Kyoto Sights and Nights offers more.

Run by Canadian Peter MacIntosh, its basic walking tour is about $40, but it also can arrange a chance to meet a geisha and attend a party for musical entertainment for about $1,200 per person. Get information at www.kyotosightsandnights.com

Your best bet to see a geisha free probably is during the annual Jidai Matsuri festival in October. About 2,000 Kyoto citizens don historical costumes dating to the eighth century and parade by foot, horseback and cart through the city.