Kyoto

Sep 27, 2014 - 1 min read

Mo-an Gardens

A Taisho period tea house

By Cathy Cawood

Community writer

Mo-an's sign is surrounded by green leaves

This building part-way up housed a display of hand made pottery

Attractive metal lantern with a patina of rust

Bicycle leaning against an old wooden house on the way up the hill

Stepping stones and a rustic bamboo fence

Camellia blossoms lying on a carpet of moss

First glimpse of the restaurant through the trees

The restaurant/cafe is in a beautiful old wooden building

Pussy willow in a stone urn at one corner of the building

It's no accident that the path up the hill and through the trees to this cafe is an almost spiritual experience in quiet beauty.

Mo-an was originally built as a tea-house in the Taisho Era, and the purpose of a teahouse garden is to calm and focus the spirit before the tea ceremony. The beautiful wooden building has views over Kyoto and delicious offerings on the menu.

It is located near Tetsugaku-no-michi, Honen-in and Ginkakuji. Be sure to look for views of Daimon-ji mountain!

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By Cathy Cawood

Community writer

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Justin Velgus 3 years ago

The Taisho period (1912-1926) was a very exciting time of wartime economic boom, rice riots and hard times, and modernization through technology, all mixed with the latest fashion and literary criticism! To have a teahouse built to offer some peace of mind and stability in everyday life must have been a real blessing.

Sleiman Azizi 2 years ago

That's an interesting point. Most, if not all of these buildings are built within a certain context. I wonder how they felt when they first made use of this tea house.

Elena Lisina 5 years ago

Always enjoy your shots, Cathy!

Cathy Cawood Photographer 5 years ago

Thank you Elena!

Jihad Mahmoud 7 years ago

Beautiful!

Olga 8 years ago

Love such places. Especially rusty lanterns!

Angelina Dietz 8 years ago

beatiful pics of the building but i´m missing some pics of the tea and the sweets of the teahouse

Cathy Cawood Photographer 8 years ago

I had a big photo day that day (hiked up Daimonji taking photos of autumn foliage all the way) and my battery ran out just as I entered the cafe. Please go and take some photos for us! :-)

15 comments in total

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Information

8 Yoshidakaguraokacho, Sakyo Ward, Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture 606-8311 (Directions)