We had breakfast after the morning walk (photos in the previous post), and then the tour bus took us to the Negoro Shrine. Negoro-ji is temple no 82 in the Shikoku 88 Temple Pilgrimage route. The scenic location and the wonderful autumn colours of trees which surrounds this temple, make this visit of the highlights of the trip (at least for me). Soon Kuan and Roger even met a young American, who was undertaking the Shikoku pilgrimage on his own...
Ritsurin Garden
Ritsurin Garden exemplifies the daimyo (a Japanese feudal lord) strolling strolling garden that were characteristic of 17th and 18th Century Japan. A daimyo strolling garden is a traditional Japanese garden where ponds, rivers and hills are expertly constructed to simulate a landscape over a tract of land, so that you get the impression of walking through a vast landscape during a leisurely walk.
The original part of the garden is the South Pond, which was constructed around 1620 by Takatoshi Ikoma. The garden passed into the hands of Yorishige Matsudaira in 1642. The garden was invigorated and expanded by successive generations of the Matsudaira family until it reached its present form in 1754. It was a part of the Matsudaira Family Villa for 228 years until it was opened to the public in 1875.
The Ritsurin Garden is fantastic and well deserves its reputation as one of the best traditional gardens in Japan. I think we really need an entire day to appreciate it fully.
Hotel Kyukamura Sanuki-Goshikidai
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