A Pine Tree

Yes it is a pine tree, meticulously trimmed by hand. Apparently these pine trees do not take to mechanical pruning of any kind, so there are gardeners employed just to prune the pine trees with their bare hands. This tree was also in the grounds of the Nijo Castle, Kyoto, Japan

Garden Lights

I found little structures like these all through the gardens that we visited. Silly me just thought they were for decoration, until one day I asked one of the guides. Garden lights! Of  course! Apparently lanterns of paraffin oil or kerosene were placed inside to give light. How well do they suit the garden surrounds? This one was found in the gardens of Nijo Castle, Kyoto, Japan.

Autumn Colour

Another view of the garden in the grounds of Nijo Castle, Kyoto, Japan. This time we have a splash of Autumn colour. Yes, it was Autumn when we were there, even though the temperature on this particular day was well in the 30's. It was also very humid, and such a contrast to what we had left at home the night before.

One of the guides told us that if we had of come just a few weeks later, the colours on the trees would be better. I still think it is stunning, going from bright green through to a bright red., all on one small tree.

Also note the beautifully trimmed shrubs underneath the maple trees. Think these may have been Azaleas.

A Garden View

Just another garden view, and yes there will be lots more. From memory, this view is from one of the verandahs on one of the buildings inside the  Nijo Castle grounds. Please note the shape of the pine trees on the left. All meticulously shaped by hand, but more on that later.

Ninomaru Palace

The Ninomaru Palace is located inside the grounds of Nijo Castle. It is a National Treasure and World Heritage site. Built in 1603, the building was used by the Shogun as his residence and office.

The inside walls, floors  and ceilings of this building are  amazing. The walls and ceilings were beautifully decorated, while the floors were timber, covered with tatami mats. The floors are what is called "nightingale floors", which squeak when an intruder is present. The 'squeak' is very quiet, and sounds like a bird singing, enough to let the residences know when there was in intruder about.

This was a "shoes off" building, as were a lot of the buildings in Japan. Unfortunately I have no photos of inside this building, as cameras were not allowed

Decorative Structure

Out of all the things I saw on my recent trip to Japan, I found the structures most interesting. The shape of the roofs, the decorations at the tips of the roofs, the decorations on the end of each ridge, the metal trimmings.

Although similar in style, the old structures were all different when you looked closely. The patterns to be found within the decorations are endless. I found the little circles at the end of each roof ridge to also have patterns, and the patterns of these on each building were different.

I can't really remember what this particular structure is. It looks like the end of a wall. What I do know is that is somewhere inside the grounds of the Nijo Castle, Kyoto, Japan.

A Castle Gate

Behold one of the gateways inside the walls of Nijo Castle, Kyoto, Japan. How stunning is this? From the beautiful metal trimmings, the artwork on the ceiling, the curved structure of the roof shape and of course the  decorations on the roof.

As a stitcher, the patterns in this structure alone would keep me inspired for quite some time. They are so intricate and full of minute detail.

A Bonsai Tree

How it this for a bonsai tree? I always thought that bonsai trees were little trees in pots, carefully manicured, trimmed and trained into shape. Even in all my reading that is what a bonsai tree is. But look at this one! It has bonsai written all over it! Carefully trimmed and trained into shape, just not in a pot, it is in the ground!

This tree was in the grounds of Nijo Castle in Kyoto, Japan. The garden there was stunning, as were the buildings. More pics to come.

Yellow Fields

Some crop growing in the fields between Tokyo and Kyoto, Japan. The photo was taken through the window of the Shinkansen train that we had the pleasure to travel on during our recent adventure to Japan. The Shinkansen is the hi speed train (or Bullet train), that can travel to speeds of up to 320kms/hour. This train lowered our journey time between the two cities to just under two hours. A great way to travel I must say, very, very smooth.

As for the crop, I still am not sure what it is. Not the right colour for rice ( at least that's what I think). Our travel group had a small discussion as to what it might be but we came up undecided. A few days later, on a tour, I asked our guide. He was not sure either, but came up with canola, as they use canola oil in their cooking.

Whatever it is, as usual mass plantings make for dramatic views.

A Taste of Japan

How is this for a garden? No, it is not my Sydney suburban garden, but one in Kyoto, Japan. It is part of the Nijo Castle grounds. Nijo Castle was built in 1603 for one of the Shoguns. I was lucky enough to visit the grounds on a recent trip to Japan, where some of the gardens are amazing. Not only the plants, but the architecture and the water features are so different to here in Sydney. More pics to come in the future.