Happo-En

I walked up to sit in this lovely garden at the end of my street. It is unusual in that it is a 'private ' garden but there is no charge to enter.

The name means beautiful from any angle, though how you get all that in one word!

Happo-en Garden was originally built in the year 1600 by Hikozaemon Okubo, an adviser to the shogunate. He built the Japanese-style garden with his residence in the middle of it. The house is built in the style of a traditional Japanese tea ceremony house.

One path is lined with 100 year+ old bonsai trees one of which is 500 years old pine tree.(pictured here)

Most of the trees include cherries, maples, and azaleas which cover the slopes, making it an ideal place to visit in both the autumn and spring. The garden also has a beautiful pond with a lovely arbor built out on the edge of the water. The stone lantern below is said to be 400 years old.

A sign at the pond says.

'"with refreshing coolness rising up from the surface of the water to soothe the skin, the arbor is an ideal venue for relaxing and enjoying the beauty"

I couldn't say it better!