Kyoto (Japan)

Kyoto was Japan's capital and the emperor's residence from 794 until 1868. It is now the country's seventh largest city with a population of 1.4 million people and a modern face.
Over the centuries, Kyoto was destroyed by many wars and fires, but due to its historic value, the city was dropped from the list of target cities for the atomic bomb and spared from air raids during World War II. Countless temples, shrines and other historically priceless structures survive in the city today.
An occidental artist once commented that Japanese architecture is "wood and paper art". The interweaving of wood and paper indeed possesses a delicate beauty, which is short-lived and easily ravaged by heartless fire, wind and snow. However, in Kyoto, precious evidence of the changes and developments in architecture spanning the Fujiwara era to the end of the Edo era remains in abundance.

Every garden is a manifestation of the Japanese love for nature and their artistic sensibility. Representing nature's grandeur within a limited space, inanimate objects may express life eternal. Placed in every corner with great attention to detail, stone lanterns and arched bridges are the perfect combination of utility and ornamentation. The full beauty of the Japanese garden may only be experienced in Kyoto. With superb aesthetic sense, the art of the Japanese garden was perfected in a seasonable climate over many long years. The old capital's gardens are a treasure worthy of pride.