Skirting one side of Kyoto’s Ninomaru Palace, was a Japanese garden redesigned in the early 1600s for an Imperial visit. Had the day been sunny, I would have spent more time admiring the rock arrangements and arched bridges that stretched over the pond. Arriving early, I at least avoided the usual crowds that visited this UNESCO World Heritage site.
Ninomaru Garden was one of two gardens within the palace’s outer moat. I visited both zigzagging along paths to avoid puddles until I arrived at Waraku-an where I decided it was time for a hot cocoa in spite of the $8 charge. There was no one else there until just before I was ready to leave when a hoard of students arrived; so different from Canadian students. I didn’t hear a sound from any of them.
