Sunday, June 19, 2011

Baltalimani Japanese Garden

Baltalimani is a Bosphorus village of Istanbul on the European side, between Emirgan and Rumeli Hisari.  It is home to a Japanese garden. 
Shimonoseki, Japan is a sister city of Istanbul, as it also sits on a strait and has a similar look.  In November 2003,  the Japanese garden was established in honor of thirty years of friendship as a sister city.  The plants and decorative items in the garden were gifts from Shimonoseki.  This is the Kamon Strait in Shomonoseki and with a quick look, one might easily confuse it with the Bosphorus strait in Istanbul.
The grounds are laid out with Japanese ornaments, walking paths, ...
 
a pond, large rocks, ...
a little house,
and some Japanese carp flags.

I have visited a few times.  It is a pleasant quiet spot in a noisy city.  The cherry blossoms were the best in the city in May, ...

and the Japanese maples were striking also.
A lovely spot for a city respite.

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