Susukino

The streets move with a hustle and hop indicative of this after hours haven where the hearts of lonely lovers come to find a quick companion and shave a few minutes off their misguided misery. Others simply stroll through the streets peering this way and that as they spy something sultry or sinister in a shop window, allowing themselves the pleasure of voyeurism and an embarrassed giggle. Susukino (すすきの?) is a red-light district located in, Japan. Susukino is often noted as "薄野" in kanji, and "ススキノ" in katakana, and directly translates as "zebra grass field". Susukino originated in 1871, when the Hokkaidō Kaitaku-shi, the Settlement Envoyship pioneering Hokkaidō, designated the area as the red-light district. After the construction of the district, the Kaitaku-shi integrated other brothels into this district. One of the reasons the Kaitaku-shi constructed a red-light district in this place was to keep laborers working. In 1872, a 1.2 meter wall, 900 meters long, was erected around the Susukino Yūkaku and a gate was placed. In the fall of the same year, an act to emancipate prostitutes was announced by the new government, which had little influence on the district. With the establishment of licensed prostitution, Susukino Yūkaku and its surrounding area have smoothly thrived. This sound uses the following file from Freesound: http://www.freesound.org/samplesViewSingle.php?id=125812