is a park in
Kyoto
Kyoto (; Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin metropolitan area along with Osaka and Kobe. , the ci ...
,
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
. It is noted as the main center for
cherry blossom viewing in Kyoto, and can get extremely crowded at that time of year (April). The park's star attraction is a weeping
cherry tree
A cherry is the fruit of many plants of the genus ''Prunus'', and is a fleshy drupe (stone fruit).
Commercial cherries are obtained from cultivars of several species, such as the sweet ''Prunus avium'' and the sour ''Prunus cerasus''. The nam ...
(''shidarezakura'') which becomes lit up at night. It also becomes busy in the New Year's Eve Festivals.
The main entrance to the park is through
Yasaka Shrine
Kanpei-taisha
, once called , is a Shinto shrine in the Gion District of Kyoto, Japan. Situated at the east end of Shijō-dōri (Fourth Avenue), the shrine includes several buildings, including gates, a main hall and a stage. The Yasaka shrine is ...
, which sits at the eastern end of
Shijō Street
runs in the center of Kyoto, Japan from east to west through the commercial center of the city. Shijō literally means ''Fourth Avenue'' of Heian-kyō, the ancient capital.
History
The section between Shinkyōgoku street and the vicini ...
in the
Gion
is a district of Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto, Japan, originating as an entertainment district in the Sengoku period, in front of Yasaka Shrine (Gion Shrine). The district was built to accommodate the needs of travellers and visitors to the shrine. ...
District. Directly to the north (and abutting the park) is the vast temple of
Chion-in
in Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto, Japan is the headquarters of the Jōdo-shū (Pure Land Sect) founded by Hōnen (1133–1212), who proclaimed that sentient beings are reborn in Amida Buddha's Western Paradise (Pure Land) by reciting the ''nembutsu'', A ...
, followed by the smaller temple of
Shōren-in
is a Buddhist temple in Kyoto, Japan.
History
It was built in the late 13th century. Shinran Shonin, the founder of the Jodo Shinshu pure land sect, was ordained a monk at Shōren-in at the age of nine.
Shōren-in was formerly the templ ...
. The park is a
nationally designated Place of Scenic Beauty.
References
External links
Information about Maruyama parkMap
Places of Scenic Beauty
Parks in Japan
Parks and gardens in Kyoto Prefecture
Geography of Kyoto
Tourist attractions in Kyoto
{{Kyoto-geo-stub