Accumulated Gardens

After Kyoto I went to Okayama, Takamatsu and Nagoya. I revisited Korakuen and Ritsurin to see them in Spring, and saw two new gardens in Nagoya (Shirotori and Tokugawaen). In addition listed below are the visits to Osaka and Nara. I visited Kenroku-en again (the snake in the bush I took video of is probably a Japanese Rat Snake (Elaphe climacophora)). I went to the garden in Mito (the third great garden), and Ashikaga flower park as day trips from Tokyo before heading home.

A bunch of Google photo galleries of the various Gardens/Parks I've been to over the years:

Ashikaga

Ashikaga Flower Park Spring 2023

Kanazawa 

Kenroku-en Summer 2014      Kenroku-en Autumn 2016

Kenroku-en Winter 2018         Kenroku-en Spring 2019

Kenroku-en Winter 2023         Kenroku-en Spring 2023

Kyoto

Nara Spring 2015

Nara Spring 2018

Nara Spring 2023

Tetsugaku No Michi (Philosopher's Walk) Spring 2015

Tetsugaku No Michi (Philosopher's Walk) Autumn 2016

Tetsugaku No Michi (Philosopher's Walk) Spring 2019

Tetsugaku No Michi (Philosopher's Walk) Spring 2023

Matsuyama

Dogo Garden Winter 2023

Mito

Kairakuen Spring 2023

Nagoya

Shirotori Garden Spring 2023

Tokugawaen Spring 2023

Okayama

Korakuen Winter 2023

Korakuen Spring 2023

Okayama Canal Park Spring 2023

Osaka

Team Labs Winter 2023

Takamatsu

Ritsurin Winter 2023

Ritsurin Spring 2023

Day trips

 I also took a few day trips on the weekends while I was working in Kyoto

I went to Osaka and checked out the TeamLabs exhibit at the botanical gardens. 

I went out to Nara to see the deer.

I'll link to both of those in the next post.

I also went to Keage incline, a disused railway track that is now a popular viewing spot for Cherry Blossoms.

There was a coffee festival near the zoo

I find the concept of going to a place to try up to 15 different coffee shop's coffee a bit weird

but Story was there, so I went and said hello

but mostly I just wanted to go to the zoo

A very ugly bird

There was a fairly lame special exhibit. 5 rabbits and a donkey (called a rabbit horse in Japanese).
It's the year of the rabbit though, so what ya gonna do?

The tiger enclosure seemed a bit bare

but he can go up into the top here

and get into a Tiger sized cat run that goes all around the big cate area.

A raccoon dog

the fountain out the front of the zoo

The zoo is also surrounded by a moat, presumably in case the tiger gets out.

I also go shown around Kyoto University

There's a museum about the history of the University

various awards that used to be given out

Protestors took over the clock tower in the 60s

A re-creation of an old student dorm

A miniature scale diorama of the University

The clock tower lit up at night

A historical part of Kyoto in the evening