Any Japanese Garden Fans Out There? This One Is A Beauty. This Is Oyakuen In The City Of Aizuwakamatsu,

Any Japanese garden fans out there? This one is a beauty. This is Oyakuen in the city of Aizuwakamatsu, Fukushima Prefecture. One of the kanji characters from the name Oyakuen (御薬園) means “medicine," referring to the medicinal herbs grown here.

Samurai of the Aizu clan started growing medicinal herbs in this garden in the 17th century in an effort to help the local people combat sickness and disease.

Oyakuen features a pond shaped like the kanji character for “heart.” On a small island in the center of the pond is a tea house which still reveals the scars of the Boshin War, when imperial troops defeated the Aizu samurai during the Meiji Restoration.

The garden has been designated a Site of Scenic Beauty.