Sakura pendant

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青蓮院 Sho-ren-in temple garden

Sho-ren-in temple in Kyoto

Is a famous garden spot. It is said to be designed by Soami during the Muromachi period. There is a water pond, island and stone lanterns, one of them was given to the temple by Toyotomi Hideyoshi. I am not sure which one, there are several, and two of them were most old looking.

Climbing a little hill and looking down at the park and temple is also exciting thing to do. There opens a view to bamboo forest, with some bamboos cut for probably temple needs or garden design. There’s also a little shrine on the top.

Looking down to the temple can be seen main pavilion with people there, sitting and admiring garden. While looking from there at the temple, there was a lady in white kimono standing right near the edge of the building, looking at the garden, looking very romantic.

While walking around the garden, I noticed that I am walking the wrong direction again. As usually. But I pretended that just stopped to take photos if someone came forward, and I hope no one noticed.

In the back garden of the temple was a big sakura tree, still in bloom, covered with pink flowers all over bent down branches.

Also beautiful paintings with cranes, pines, sakura and red sun in one of the rooms.

I would love to stay there even longer and to paint some 山水画!

P.S. I was lucky to take photo also of this beautiful fish.

Mitake 三多気 sakura viewing spot

Mitake is one of Kansai area famous sakura viewing spots, it’s  ranked one of six best spots here:

https://www.kansaiscene.com/2018/03/get-set-sakura-fever/

Although it’s in a country place, used practically for agriculture, there were many people, just walking or equipped with big cameras. Along the rice fields’ edge, filling water with petals and sometimes reflecting there, are growing old sakura trees. Some of them have holes or split trunks, but they are still blossoming…

There is a shrine on the top of a little hill with three big trees. They are said to be very old and preceded the shrine, which was built for worshipping them.

Two trees are growing right next to one another, forming the entrance to the shrine.

This looked so impressive, and reminded of a fairy tale, or enchanted forest.

Also the snake figure near the hand washing vessel looked alive and too real, giving even more mystical feeling to this place. Water under the snake figure’s mysterious look was filled with flower petals…

I climbed up the hill to the shrine, and it was the kind of nothingness and desertedness as could expect, although less scary as I somehow started imagining.

Peach blossoms at Yuanmingyuan 圆明园

Peach blossoms

Yuanmingyuan 圆明园: Blossoms and the lake