It was a leisurely start to the day today, with a very nice hotel breakfast to kick it off. The breakfast area was surrounded by shelves holding a number of high quality architecture and design books which were interesting to flip through.
We got underway soon after 9am by walking to Suizenji Jojuen Gardens, quite a distance from our hotel. It was very pleasant to be out strolling on a warm sunny day and with only a simple itinerary for the next 8 hours. We could happily pace ourselves and poke around in any interesting little shops we might come across.
Suizenji Jojuen Gardens were begun in 1632 and started life as a Buddhist temple and tea retreat. It was completed in 1671 and the garden you can see today is basically the same as it was in 1671. The ponds inside the garden are fed by spring water from Mt Aso. The first thing we come upon when entering the garden is a small thatched building currently used as a tea house. It was used in the early 1600s for a master to orally pass down highly regarded poetry to his disciple. The initiation of the poems was, in this instance, being passed onto Prince Toshihito, the younger brother of the Emperor. It is now the only existing building in Japan that contains a room for this specific purpose, and as such is a national treasure. Quite amazing! Now used as a teahouse, where one can sit and contemplate the beautiful gardens all around, it the perfect place to absorb the serenity of the site. We felt we must enjoy the experience and indulge in a cup of frothy matcha tea and a sweet. We sat down on the allocated mat and were served in Japanese style. It was a wonderful moment.
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| Suizenji Jojuen Gardens |
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| The building now used as a teahouse |
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| Enjoying our delicately served cup of green tea and a Japanese sweet |
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| Note the replica Mt Fuji towards the rear |
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| These azalea blossoms are on the same bush |
On the walk back into town we stopped off at a supermarket to buy an ice-cream for lunch. It is not acceptable to walk around either eating or drinking, and it is expected you either consume your goods outside the shop, where sometimes seating is provided, in your car or take it home. We were leaning against a rail enjoying our ice-creams when a little old Japanese woman tottered past us clearly keen to engage us in conversation. We had no idea what she was saying but as she pointed to the sunny sky and our ice-creams so we guess she was saying it was great weather to enjoy them. She kept smiling and talking and then happily waved at us when she decided to move on.
As John was taking a photo of one of the tiny kei-cars he likes, a young Japanese man came up to us to say hi. He wanted to know why we would take a photo of the car? Like all the other Japanese we have engaged with, he was very friendly and wished us a very good day.
John is particularly enjoying the variety of kei-cars on the road. They are wonderful little lego-like cars, popular because they are tax-free but also ideal for parking in small carparks.
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| Parking for little cars only. |
In the Satsuma Rebellion the castle was dealt a serious blow with major fires destroying both keeps, which were only reconstructed in the 1960s, in concrete! There was a massive earthquake in 2016. in which large portions of the some of the defensive walls and also structures within the castle complex fell down, including parts of the castle. Huge efforts of restoration have gone on since and the grounds are now open to the public again, albeit with a skywalk to gain access.
It was well worth the visit. A bit of a bonus was a group of three "samurai" doing a bit of a performance as we left.
