Kicking the bucket...list: Day 5 - Gardens, castles and museums, oh my!

 

Ritsurin-koen

Staying in Western-style hotels often means getting access to the breakfast buffet every morning. Unfortunately, the offerings are usually not very inspiring, even more so when you are staying multiple nights at the same establishment, meaning the same bland choices each morning (undercooked bacon, fried or scrambled eggs, salad, rice, grilled fish and so on). Even the "special" dishes aren't always distinctive: the olive oil beef bowl オリーブ牛の牛丼, supposedly an example of delicious Shōdoshima 小豆島 cuisine (the island is known for its olive production), tasted like any other gyūdon dish, with my unsophisticated palate unable to detect any hint of olive oil: 

First world problems aside, on the fifth morning I felt fortified enough to venture out into the city of Takamatsu 高松. Just as I did the morning before I boarded the Kotoden train ことでん, this time for the short ride to Ritsurin-Kōen Station 栗林公園駅:  

The east gate of the station's namesake was about a ten-minute walk away. Ritsurin-kōen 栗林公園 is Takamatsu's premier sightseeing spot, an Edo period 江戸時代 stroll garden spread out over 75 hectares/185 acres, encompassing six ponds, 13 landscaped hills and more than 1000 pine trees, and incorporating Shiun-zan 紫雲山 as "borrowed scenery" (a common feature of traditional Japanese gardens). 

From the east gate entrance, visitors have a choice of two routes to take: one going through the Nantei 南庭 (South Garden), and the other around the Hokutei 北庭 (North Garden). I opted for the former as by all indications it's the more pleasant way to experience the garden.

"Ritsurin" 栗林 means "chestnut groves", but the garden has been associated with pine trees from its beginning. Supposedly the most beautiful of the 1400 pines in the garden is the Tsurukame-matsu 鶴亀松. This combination of a black pine and 110 rocks signifies a crane spreading its wings atop a giant tortoise's back:

No Japanese garden would be complete without its contingent of ravenous carp: 

Higurashi-tei 日暮亭 is a thatched-roofed teahouse dating from 1898:

The Seki-heki Wall 石壁 (赤壁) bolsters the scenery of the Seiko 西湖, or West Pond. It's said to have been named after the Red Cliffs, a scenic spot along the Yangtze River in China:

Another attractive teahouse is the Kyū Higurashi-tei 旧日暮亭:

Standing next to yet another teahouse (Kikugetsu-tei) is the Kansuichi Pond 涵翠池, which utilizes Mt. Shiun as borrowed scenery: 

The pond is noted for its water lilies in summer:

Visitors can enter the 17th-century Kikugetsu-tei 掬月亭 to sip matcha 抹茶 and snack on a traditional sweet, and enjoy different perspectives of the garden from the tatami 畳 rooms. Stiff knees prevented me from sitting in the traditional seiza style 正座 while enjoying the tea:

A koto 箏, a traditional zither-like instrument. My wife plays the Chinese version 古筝:

Looking at the Kikugetsu-tei Teahouse from the outside as I continued exploring the South Garden:

Standing on Hiraiho Hill 飛来峰, which was built to resemble Mt. Fuji 富士山 and was inspired by a place of scenic beauty in Hangzhou 杭州, China. Sometimes it seems like no matter anywhere you go in the world that has a photogenic view chances are good a young Asian woman will be in the your intended shot, posing under the impression she is the equal of professional fashion models:

Except that in this photo taken a little bit later there's an old man standing on the bridge. So much for misogynistic/racist observations: 

Korihe'e Nine-story Pagoda 古理兵衛九重塔 was created by a ceramics master who was invited from Kyōto 京都 in 1647 by the first daimyō 大名 of Takamatsu, Matsudaira Yorishige 松平頼重: 

Shozan Hill 渚山:

The view from Fuyōhō Hill 芙蓉峰:

There wasn't as much to see in the Hokutei with the exception of the iris garden 花しょうぶ園:

With lunch time approaching I returned to the Nantei to have a local craft beer with a dish of braised beef. I thought it was going to be more substantial than it turned out to be, so my stomach remained partially empty until later in the afternoon when I took a break at the Mister Donut ミスタードーナツ inside Takamatsu Station 高松駅: 

The last place I visited in Ritsurin-koen was the Sanuki Folkcraft Museum 讃岐民芸館. The current exhibition was called "A Cool Summer through the Senses":

There was also an exhibit on decorative roof tiles:

A tiger manufactured at the end of the Edo period:

Speaking of the Edo period, there were roughly 300 castles dotting the country during that time. Following the Meiji Restoration 明治維新 many of these castles were dismantled, with natural disasters and World War II firebombing taking care of most of the rest. Some cities have built concrete replicas of the castles that used to dominate their skylines; others have turned the old castle grounds into public parks. Takamatsu falls into the latter category, and the site of the former Takamatsu-jō 高松城 (Takamatsu-koen 高松公園) was my next destination after the garden. On the way there I passed by this black cat just hanging out in a parking lot:

Of the castle (built in 1588), the walls and seawater moat survive, as well as several of the original turrets:  

The Sakura-Gomon Gate 桜御問, however, is a reconstruction, as the original burned down in an air raid:

Seen in the small museum:

The original Hiunkaku 披雲閣 was a large building used as a government office and the residence of the head of the Matsudaira clan 松平氏 but was demolished in 1872. The present Hiunkaku was constructed in 1917. The interior was closed at the time of my visit but it was possible to walk around the exterior:

Peeking through the glass:

The Sayabashi Bridge 鞘橋 dates from the Edo period:

After finishing up at the castle (or what was left of it), it was still only the middle of the afternoon. So I decided to visit the Takamatsu City Museum of Art 高松市美術館 and its permanent exhibition. The lights on bystander by Mari Katayama 片山真理 were the result of the room where it was being displayed and not a part of the C-print: 

A Public Demonstration of Painting by Prof. NAKANSIHI Natsuyuki (2003) by Akira Yamaguchi 山口晃. Nakanishi was a conceptual and visual artist active in the 1960's Japanese avant-garde movement:

A small wood box with a butterfly design, an example of local lacquer ware: 

Tray with Wave Design, Kinma (c. 1958) by Masami Isoi 磯井正美:

The striking interior of the museum, which was once a Bank of Japan building:

A temple I passed in the early evening while hunting for somewhere to have dinner:

That morning I had read an article in The Japan Times ジャパンタイムズ on how some Chinese visitors to Japan find themselves confused by the name of a certain bank. Close to where I decided to have dinner I came across an example in Takamatsu: 

Gusto ガスト - a family restaurant chain that always seems to be there when you most need it: 

The Takamatsu City Museum of Art was merely an appetizer. The following day I would dig into the artistic entree of this trip on the island of Naoshima 直島. See you there!