A Journey to Japan: Ritsurin Garden

After spending two nights in Tokushima, we decided to move on. We took the train from Tokushima to Takamatsu, the primary city in Kagawa Prefecture. And after dropping off our bags in the hotel, we went to Ritsurin Garden, which is perhaps its most famous tourist attraction.

Ritsurin Garden is a large, historic garden in Shikoku. It was completed in 1745 as a private garden, but opened to the general public in 1875. It has a northern and southern side, with the southern side more of a Japanese style, in contrast to the northern side which was slightly redesigned in the Western style. It was a huge garden, and for that, we didn't even complete the entire area. Rather, we decided to take an hour and complete the route that goes through the southern side.

It was such a serene place, and strolling around the garden paths was just a very pleasant and peaceful activity. There were golden fish, koi, which could be fed by visitors. There was even a small boat ride that one can do (though we skipped that part). The pictures above just show the various shots of this place, and I must say, it provides a very traditional Japanese panorama.

After spending more than an hour here, it was lunch time. So we headed out, and found a very local udon shop. Takamatsu after all is the udon capital of Japan, at least that is what I am told. Hence it was worth finding one. Very delicious I must say!