When I left the temple, I saw a lot of Japanese roof tiles (kawara 瓦), ornamental end pieces and ogre tiles called onigawara (鬼瓦) arranged on the ground under a tree. The temple just underwent major restoration work and the tiles were probably stored/exhibited there. The first thing that caught my eye was a row … Continue reading Onigawara – Japanese roof tiles at Toji-in temple in Kyoto
Everything in Japan has a kawaii version, I guess. This is a miniature version of the popular Yotsume-gaki bamboo fence and it is used to mark a water faucet. I have to add this to our Real Japanese garden e-Book about bamboo fences.
Putting in extra hours after work to make a dream come true: Will probably build a small tsuboniwa garden (190x220cm) for my favorite Kyoto restaurant Mamezen with a colleague and a friend of his. Here are some ideas from the on-site visit yesterday:
After a day of working in heavy rain, a colleague and I climbed up the mountain behind the temple, just above the tea houses Kasa-tei (傘亭) and Shigure-tei (時雨亭). Kasa means umbrella and shigure means drizzle or autumn rain and is written with the kanji for "time" and "rain". Very poetic, I find. Both tea … Continue reading Day 25 – Planting moss and the mountains of Kyoto
The head gardener and I built the frame for a wooden fence (itabei - 板塀) in a restaurant. The existing dobei (土塀), the traditional earthen wall has gotten weak and is crumbling, which gives us a great view into the construction of it. A frame is built with wooden posts and a grid of slices … Continue reading Day 26 – Building a itabei
90 Days in Kyoto 