We spent the last day of summer break wandering the tranquil environs of Anderson Japanese Gardens in Rockford, Illinois. The balance between water features, natural elements, tea houses, foot bridges and sculptures had almost a meditative effect. We had a wonderful morning of reflection.
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| Pond serenity |
Whenever strolling through a local Japanese garden, I am amazed by how different the landscape looks from what is typical in the Midwest. Japanese gardens quickly transport me far away from my everyday life. Paths take you past waterfalls large and small, over bridges, around tea houses and into quiet corners.
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| Crossing a Japanese foot bridge. |
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| Look at all of the coi! |
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| Serene tea house at Anderson Japanese Gardens |
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| Stone footpath up! |
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| Delicate bamboo water feature |
Water features both large and small intrigue and delight.
There are a number of sculptures throughout the gardens. My favorite happened to be the musicians around the pond!
Our peaceful meandering through Anderson Japanese Gardens was provided us with the mindset reframe that we needed. The gardens also offer tours, a restaurant and gift shop. There are also events throughout the season including tea gatherings. The gardens are open seasonally, so please check the schedule. If you need a nature reset, Anderson Japanese Gardens is one to keep on your list.
**Disclosure: No compensation was received for this post. All opinions are 100% my own.
Wow, a Japanese garden in Illinois. A must see indeed. Looks really solemn and aside from reflection, you can do meditation here too. The place is so pretty. And I miss seeing coi, as they say, for luck to have a coi fish :)
ReplyDeleteHow beautiful and serene! I’ve visited a Japanese garden in Portland and loved it; no doubt that this inspired garden was very similar.
ReplyDeleteSuch beautiful gardens! I have been to the Japanese gardens in San Francisco at the Golden Gate Park and they were lovely and so serene. Love your photos!
ReplyDeleteWhen I first clicked I really thought this was in Japan, until I saw it was in Illinois! Wild! Beautiful waterfalls.
ReplyDeleteThere is something about Japanese gardens that is so lovely. That's pretty neat that they even had a tea house, but too bad it's not used as one.
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