Then, in the 17th century, as shunga was coming into its own, Ihara Saikaku wrote a series of rollicking tales with such titles as Five Women Who Loved Love and The Great Mirror of Male Love, the last about passionate love between older and younger samurai. This was the period of the floating world of pleasure quarters populated by courtesans, the main subject matter of shunga and woodblock prints. The greatest was the Yoshiwara in Edo, now Tokyo. There a man could enjoy a night of fine food, music, dancing and witty conversation, and possibly sex, though he might have to spend a fortune and wait months before the courtesan agreed. The girls were highly educated and spent their time painting, writing poems and practising the incense ceremony. Just as a man would seek out a qualified doctor, he went to a professional for recreational sex (as opposed to procreational sex with his wife). Admittedly, these women started out as slaves, but those at the top were wealthy celebrities who picked and chose their lovers and were just as glamorous as the Venetian and Parisian courtesans.