Rikugein(六擬園）translates to ‘Six Poems Garden’ and reproduces in miniature 88 scenes from famous poems. They were originally built in the 17th century
or the 5th Tokugawa Shogun and are considered to be one of most beautiful landscape gardens in Tokyo.
The gardens are accessible on the Yamanote Line or the Namboku Line and are a 10 minute walk from either of the stations. A few cafes and restaurants dot the path from the station to the garden entrance and the weary traveler who has spent the hour in exploring the gardens can rest at one of the cafes.
A ticket needs to be purchased to enter the park, the automated vending machines were not working, I was directed to the cash counters. However I could pay by my transportation card and bought a ticket.
In the age of instagram reels, a few tourists made reels of waiting in the line, purchasing tickets, entering gardens…
There are around three tea houses located within the garden and the Fukiage Chaya is functioning and the traveler can have a pot of traditional Japanese tea there.
I visited the gardens in spring and wanted to capture the famous Cherry Blossom Tree located within the gardens. The weeping Cherry Blossom tree near the main entrance is the biggest attraction with the branches bent in mourning and petals scattered on the soil below.
It was the main attraction for the tourists on the spring late afternoon of my visit. Crowds stood on all sides trying to capture the tree or themselves against the tree.
The gardens organised a traditional Japanese dance performance a few times during the day, I was in the middle of the garden when the announcement came for the performance. I hoped that the crowds would dissipate and allow me to capture a few pictures of the trees without the crowds, but no such luck.
A few of the older locals rushed back to the main gate to watch the performance but the overseas tourists stubbornly stayed, crowding the vantage spots, making a picture of only the trees impossible.
A leisurely walk around the park, climbing the small hills for vantage points, entering the tea houses takes around an hour. I was back to the weeping Cherry Blossom tree at the end of my trip and tried to take few more pictures in the evening twilight.
I came to the gardens expecting an abundance of Cherry Blossom trees and I was disappointed. There are a handful of Cherry Blossom trees in the park and most were shedding petals when I visited the place.
The weeping Cherry Blossom tree was the sole attraction thought it too had shed a quarter of its flowers. The gardens would make a good place for silent contemplation without the hordes of visitors in spring, but that is probably for another day and season!