It being another lovely Saturday, and tragically, our last for awhile in Argentina, we decided to hit up one of the few places left (within walking distance) we’ve never been - El Jardin Japones.

It was such a funny feeling after watching Vonnegut & SSG Millie’s trip from afar to then wander into a microcosm of their experiences. It made me miss them even more!

The 5-acre garden was created in the late 1960’s as a sign of goodwill from the resident Japanese community. It was redesigned about ten years later by landscape artist Yasuo Inomata, who wanted to make it more Zen.

I can’t say for sure how Zen it is now, but it is beautiful and lively.

A sprawling network of narrow footpaths and flamingly red bridges comprise most of the gardens.

Oh, and about a thousand freakishly, horrifically large koi.

My terror was so great I was forced to distance myself through oversize sunglasses.

I believe these are prayers?

Although this statue is clearly labeled ’samurai,’ I think it looks more like a bull. Argentines. Always thinking of meat.

It was nearly impossible to cross some of the bridges. Lots of visitors on such a beautiful weekend.

But when a spot cleared out:

the views were lovely.

This is another thing that makes Buenos Aires so wonderful, despite everything else - there are little spots of green oasis dotted all over the city like healthy spots in dirty lungs.

Hope everyone’s Saturday was just as tranquil as mine.

This entry was posted on Saturday, August 30th, 2008 at 10:10 pm and is filed under Argentina, Buenos Aires, Japan, South America, Street Scenes. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.