Shiga Prefecture is full of surprises. On one of my cycling explorations of Takashima, I turned a corner near a vast new shopping mall, and a little way down the road I discovered a beautiful red pagoda standing in a pond surrounded by white walls topped with magnificent undulating dragons. This exquisite Chinese style garden was created as a symbol of friendship between the Chinese city of Yuyao and the town of Adogawa (now part of Takashima City.) In Japan it really pays to leave the main roads and explore!
- 1 min read
Yomei-en Chinese Garden
A symbol of friendship in Adogawa

By Cathy Cawood
Community writer

A bridge spans the pond near the pagoda

Magnificent dragons undulate along the top of the wall

The pretty red pagoda rests on rocky pillars in the pond

Beautiful color combinations decorate the ceiling of the pagoda

The pond and pagoda viewed through a vase-shaped window in the wall

Every wall window is different, and all of them are beautiful

A red Chinese trumpet vine blooms on an island in the pond

Koi, some of them quite large, lurk in the green water

The garden is crammed with fantastically shaped rocks

Two dragons meet above a circular gate
Join the discussion
Olga
10 years ago
Such a wonderful combination of green and red!
1 comment in total
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