Day 14: Arashiyama bamboo grove

Since I stayed out so late last night, I slept in a bit this morning, and spent the first part of the day finishing booking the rest of the trip (thanks to my parents for helping me find a last minute place on a holiday weekend 😅). After getting a bit of work done, I headed to meet a friend at a cafe. We met up and had a great vegan lunch of Japanese curry and spent a few hours chatting and laughing about life and work and the world. It was really lovely to spend a bit of time with her. We parted ways in the afternoon as she had to leave for her next leg of her Japan trip. 

I decided to go to Arashiyama, a famous bamboo grove here, hoping to miss the big crowds by going in the later afternoon. Tourist attractions in Japan get so crowded so quickly. If you want to see an area without crowds you are supposed to get up at 6am and be there before 7, which is what most people at my hostel were doing this morning, when I decided to get some sleep and work done. 

The Arashiyama bamboo forest is mostly made up of mōsō bamboo, which a type of timber bamboo native to Taiwan and China, but has naturalized in Japan. The shoots are edible and the species is generally used in the textile industry. Honestly, it has a lot of hype, but it’s pretty small and mostly just a lot of people taking photos. It’s fun to watch people dressed like geishas wandering around doing their photoshoots, but honestly that was more interesting than the bamboo grove. 

I did go to the surrounding Temple and garden of Tenryuji Temple. That was really pretty, it’s a zen garden and temple built in the 1300s and is considered a world heritage site. 

I got a cherry blossom and matcha ice cream as a treat, but it wasn’t super flavorful. Overall, Arashiyama was a bit disappointing, but I’m still glad I went to find out. 

As the sun set I took the bus back towards the hostel to meet up with a bunch of people we went out for dinner and relaxed and it was really lovely. It’s been nice hanging with people these last few days and meeting people from all over, but I’m also excited to have some time on my own again soon.