It had been six months since I'd last been in Kyoto. Making regular trips to areas outside Tokyo is something I've only started doing in the last few years of an 18-year career. The way each region carries its own local flavor has gotten interesting to me.
I went with Dom Busters Kyoto — a delivery health (deriheru) outfit. The 80-minute course, ¥11,000. South Kyoto / Fushimi area, open 10:00–22:00.
Late night in Kyoto
The reason I book a delivery health girl late at night changes from one night to the next. Tonight it was a "can't-sleep" night. I was lying in my hotel room staring at the ceiling, and before the date rolled over I called Dom Busters Kyoto.
When I asked, "Is it still okay to book right now?", the answer came back calm: "We're open 10:00 to 22:00, so yes." A shop where the front-desk tone doesn't shift even in the small hours is a sign of a well-run operation. You don't get treated carelessly just because it's a midnight call — which sounds obvious, but in practice it isn't.
The girl arrived a little after midnight. I figured she might be tired, but there was no trace of it. For the late shift, there are people built for the late shift. Behind the face of the old capital, the Kiyamachi and Gion neighborhoods keep a nightlife of their own. A shop that runs late hours in an area like this is being operated by people who understand the late-night clientele.
A late-night 80 minutes feels a little different in the body than a daytime 80 minutes. No rushing. Unhurried. She matched my pace. What I was after on a sleepless night was right there. She read the late-night mood too, and didn't force the energy up. That sense of knowing when to hold back was what made it good.
When I stepped back outside after the 80 minutes, Kyoto was still moving. A city that has people in it even late at night makes loneliness harder to feel. I got back to the hotel, lay down, and was asleep right away. ¥11,000 for 80 minutes — I think of that price as also covering the "good night's sleep" it bought me.
On the "density" of time
Eighty minutes can feel like a completely different length depending on its density. There's an 80 minutes that feels too fast, an 80 minutes that feels just right, and an 80 minutes that feels too short. Dom Busters Kyoto was the third kind — meaning that when it ended, I thought, "I'd have liked to stay a bit longer."
I mean that as a compliment.
Time with the girl
A Kyoto delivery health, ¥11,000. If I had to sum up 80 minutes at that price point in one line, it comes down to this: the density of the time was high.
More than the technical details, what carried through was the feeling of "being present in this moment." Few girls can create that.
If I come back
Dom Busters Kyoto has a nomination system — requesting a specific girl (call to confirm). Next time I want to come back on a nomination. South Kyoto / Fushimi area, 10:00–22:00.
Summary
| Rating item | Stars |
|---|---|
| Front-desk handling | ★★★★★ |
| Girl's vibe | ★★★☆☆ |
| Technique / service | ★★★★★ |
| How well the time was spent | ★★★★☆ |
| Value for money | ★★☆☆☆ |
| Overall | ★★★★★ |
The combination of the city of Kyoto and Dom Busters Kyoto landed, for me, as "the right call."