Inside the Japan wedding of two ballet dancers

Ako Kondo and Chengwu Gu became engaged over a casual brunch one weekend. “After a Sunday brunch, we took our puppies for a walk in Melbourne’s Albert Park,” describes Ako. “Our toy poodle, Choc, suddenly dropped a ring box in front of me. And a second later, Chengwu was kneeling in front of me, asking: ‘Will you marry me?’”

The couple, who are both ballet dancers at The Australian Ballet, knew they wanted to wed in Ako’s hometown, in Japan, so they did “lots of online research” of venues before they travelled over there to scope them out. In particular, they were interested in Hyakka-rou, in Nagoya, Japan. “The venue had a chapel with beautiful stained glass, but then the reception area was a very traditional Japanese setting with a beautiful garden,” Ako recalls of seeing the space for the first time. “It was the combination of classic and traditional Japanese. And that was what I was looking for.”

On their wedding day, the couple chose to wear the traditional kimono and hakama, changing into these for a second look.

Scroll through to go inside this elegant wedding.

For her wedding reception, the bride chose a Justin Alexander wedding dress.

Exiting the chapel as husband and wife.

The venue was the neo-Japanese Hyakka-Rou, in Nagoya, Japan.

Well-wishers gather outside the chapel.

“I always dreamed of wearing a princess dress on my wedding day since I was little,” shares Ako. “I went for fittings with my mum for the first time in Japan. I met my dream dress quite quickly. I loved the shape of the dress and the details of the lace. And surprisingly it just fitted me really well.”

The couple’s rings were by Ellissi Jewellery and the bride wore shoes by Alan Pinkus.

The groom wore a suit by Calibre.

“I went for the princess look,” says Ako. “Elegant hair (a classic low bun) and glamorous make-up with big lashes.” Her beauty look was by Tomomi Kamio.

For the floral arrangements, the bride chose dahlias, a symbol of commitment, and chrysanthemums,
a symbol of love and loyalty.

Her most memorable moment from the wedding? “Walking down the aisle with my dad,” says Ako. “I left home for Australia when I was 16 to follow my dream to become a ballerina. Without my dad’s support, I would never be where I am today. He is a very special man in my life and to have him next to me on my wedding day was unforgettable.”

“We both really wanted to wear the traditional kimono and hakama on the day, so we decided to have the wedding in Japan.”

Ako wore Peony by Jo Malone as her wedding day fragrance.

“The catering, cake, florist and invitations were all managed by the venue,” says the bride.

“My husband, Chengwu, my boss, David McAllister, and Chengwu’s best friend, Ty King-Wall, all gave really good speeches in English, a bit of Chinese, and Japanese.”

“At the end of Chen’s finishing speech, he pulled off a really good Japanese joke that made the whole crowd laugh.”

The bride and groom share a quiet moment after their ceremony.

“All the inspiration came from Pinterest,” says Ako.

For the first dance, the bride and groom chose the original soundtrack to the Japanese animated film .Click Here: online rugby store malaysia