#yawata

Several Koi swimming in a stream of the Shōkadō Garden, Yawata City-Kyoto Prefecture.
Did you know?: The words “koi” and “Nishikigoi” come from the Japanese words 鯉 (carp) and 錦鯉 (brocaded carp), respectively. In Japanese, “koi” is a homophone for 恋, another word that means “affection” or “love”, so koi are symbols of love and friendship in Japan.

A small hill with “Kinmei Moso Chiku” bamboo in front of the Chiku-in tearoom in the Shōkadō Garden, Yawata City-Kyoto Prefecture.
“Kinmei-Moso-Chiku” (Phyllostachys pubescens var. nabeshimana) belongs to Poaceae (the Grass family). It is a variety of "Moso-Chiku” introduced into Japan from the Jiangnan region of China. The culms are sunny yellow with green vertical stripes.

Another view of the Soan “Shōkadō” in the inner garden of the Shōkadō Garden, Yawata City-Kyoto Prefecture. This is the hut where Shōkadō Shōjō (松花堂昭乗, 1584-1639) lived after retirement.

A suikinkutsu in front of the Soan “Shōkadō” in the Shōkadō Garden, Yawata City-Kyoto Prefecture.

The entrance to the Soan “Shōkadō” in the inner garden of the Shōkadō Garden, Yawata City-Kyoto Prefecture.

Chiku-in tearoom in the Shōkadō Garden, Yawata City-Kyoto Prefecture.

A suikinkutsu near the Baiin Tea Room in the Shōkadō Garden, Yawata City-Kyoto Prefecture.

A suikinkutsu near the Baiin Tea Room in the Shōkadō Garden, Yawata City-Kyoto Prefecture.

The entrance to the Shōkadō Garden, Yawata City-Kyoto Prefecture. There are a lot of bamboos in this garden; they boast some 40 varieties, among them the “Kinmei Moso Chiku.”