Trip West to the Old–and New–East-Part 2

During the the Tokugawa Shogunate, 1603-1868, the Emperor served as figure-head for the government of warlords. The two Imperial Palaces were in Edo (now Tokyo) and Kyoto. When warlords gathered for ceremonies at the Edo Palace, their retinues were were not permitted to enter the palace itself, but confined to one of several guardhouses like this one. 

Our first port of call was Shimizu, close to Mt. Fuji. Our shore excursion included a cable car ride up to the hilltop grounds of the castle where Ieyasu Tokugawa spent his final years: 1605-1616–which provided the upper left and lower right views of Mt. Fuji.

The grounds include noble residences and shrines.

Our next port of call was Osaka, from which another excursion took us to the gardens, temples and residences of the Kyoto Imperial Palace.

The significance of the phoenix  atop the Golden Pavilion is “it stays only when the ruler is without darkness and corruption.”

The vast gardens were beautifully maintained and serene. Here and in several other Japanese public gardens, we saw supports for long, low branches, to preserve their elegant reach.