My Outfit Details:

LoveShackFancy “Angie” dress (also available in this print, and see more maxi dresses here)

vintage belt (this one is similar, or you can shop new belts here)

chunky pink cardigan (similar, similar) 

beaded purse (a dupe for the much pricier Shrimps bag)

pink beret (mine is actually Brixton)

Sam Edelman Lulie pumps — I love a low heel

Kim’s Outfit Details:

vintage dress (similar)

Free People bow (no longer available, so try these or these!)

Arashiyama Bamboo Forest

On my last trip to Japan, Bobby and I only spent one full day in Kyoto. It’s something I always regretted, and though we were able to pack in quite a bit in our short stay there, we never made it to the Arashiyama Bamboo Forest. We somehow fit in multiple shrines (including Fushimi Inari), hiked a mountain, wandered through Gion, and had an excellent tofu tasting for dinner in less than one full day. But still, I regretted skipping it and wanted to make a point of going to the bamboo forest on this trip.

I always advise getting to the popular tourist spots as early as possible, both for the best experience and for optimal photos. Truthfully, and I know this may be hard to believe, Kim and I spend very little time taking photos. We like to knock them out as quickly as possible and as early as possible so that we can enjoy the rest of our day without worrying about getting the shot. After all, this was not a work trip — it was purely for pleasure! 

You can see the people behind us in this particular shot.

Though we went plenty early, the crowds were already starting to form. We were there during peak Sakura bloom, so getting an empty background would probably require a tripod and composite or a lot of photoshop, and I just didn’t want to bother — so we focused instead on getting in early and getting creative with angles to block the background. Also, hot tip: everyone thinks you’re doing something important when you have a nice camera and are photographing someone in a full length dress. I kept telling people they could walk into our shot, no problem…but everyone was very considerate. So we tried to do this as quickly as possible and not take up anyone else’s room. 

Once we wandered through the magical bamboo forest (it really is something else!), we relaxed with Rilakkuma (get it? Because he’s the relax bear?) at the Rilakkuma cafe, walked along the river, hiked a mountain to see some monkeys, and even hit up a pug cafe. But I’ll cover all of that in another post! Lots more of Japan posts coming soon…