Why not visit a Japanese garden in London and enjoy a quiet spot on your vacation.
Today, I'd like to introduce you to the different places you can visit!
Japanese garden in London: article summary
Japanese garden in London: Kyoto Japanese Garden in Holland Park
Kyoto's gardens are distinguished by their unique design and ambience. It's almost as if the designer had created a little piece of Japan right in the heart of London.
The garden features traditional Japanese ornaments and a superb carp pond. A serene oasis of authentic design and rich history, it's easy to close your eyes and feel transported to Japan.
History of the Kyoto garden
Holland Park, a 22-hectare park to the west of London, is built around Holland House.
The original name of the house was Cope Castle and it was once a magnificent mansion that housed powerful families and diplomats throughout its history.
It was built in 1605, but unfortunately destroyed by the Blitz in 1941. London County Council bought the land in 1952.
In 1991, the Kyoto Garden was inaugurated. The Kyoto Garden was a gift to Great Britain from the city of Kyoto as a token of their long-standing friendship.
A place to discover with the whole family
If you're coming with children, don't forget to visit Holland Park's free playground, with its many natural wooden play elements.
I recommend that you visit the Kyoto Garden in spring, ideally in mid-April, for the following reasons admire the magnificent cherry blossoms.
Kew Gardens Japanese Garden
The Japanese landscape of Kew Gardens forms a double circle around the Chokushimon (Imperial Messenger Gate), a copy of the gate at Kyoto's Nishi Hongan-ji.
Professor Masao Fukuhara of Osaka University of the Arts designed the garden in 1996, adapting Momoyama's garden styles. during construction of the original Chokushimon.
Japanese gardens aim to reproduce the mountains and rivers of the Japanese landscape on a smaller scale.
Japanese garden in London: the peace garden
The Japanese landscape is made up of three gardens. The Peace Garden is the first. It is based on the traditional concept that a garden leads to a teahouse.
A lantern will help you find your way. Kew doesn't have a tea room, but you can find a hinoki plant here. planted by the Emperor of Japan during his reign as Crown Prince.
The garden of harmony
You then reach the second garden, which is the Garden of Harmony. It overlooks a grassy slope with well-trimmed azaleas.
A granite block with a haiku written at Kew by Kyoshi Takahamaa, one of Japan's most talented haiku poets, stands next to garden harmony.
It reads:
Even the sparrows
Free from fear of man
In England in spring
Admire the Regent's Park waterfall
Although not officially designated as a Japanese garden, it features many traditional aesthetics and ancient ornamentation.
The Queen Mary's Garden district is also located here, named after the wife of King George V, created in the 1930s.
Among the 12,000 roses is a mysterious mound. It is reminiscent of the Ninomaru (Chiyoda) garden in the eastern gardens of Tokyo's Imperial Palace.
The miniature waterfalls in Japanese gardens represent Onmyodo, the Buddhist symbolism of yin (or yang), two opposites (water or stone) that complement each other.
Hammersmith Park Japanese Garden
The Japanese garden at Hammersmith Park in West London is the oldest Japanese garden in a British public park.
It's the only vestige of a larger garden that was the centerpiece of the 1910 British-Japanese Exhibition in White City.
The Japanese plants were all imported to Japan for the show garden and included vast pools and waterfalls made of clay and stone.
Sadly, all exhibitions closed in October 1910, but the original Peace Garden survived until the 1950s, when it was demolished and rebuilt in a new style.
Japanese roof garden SOAS
A small, well-kept Japanese garden hides atop a rooftop on the western corner of Russell Square.
It is located above the Brunei Gallery at SOAS, part of the University of London. It's a quiet, enclosed space. It is, however, you can always take a look.
The Japanese garden at Peckham Rye Park
The Japanese garden at Peckham Rye Park opened in 1908. It was the result of several gifts from Tokyo to London at the time.
Unfortunately, many of the original bamboo plantations have now disappeared, even if the shelter and bridge still survive.
The former garden is set around a former pond and now comprises a series of stream-fed ponds with Japanese plants and shrubs.
If you want to find inner peace, I recommend a visit to one of the gardens mentioned above. You'll feel all the zen and you'll be able to resume your tour of London with a light heart!
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