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Phoenix in Photos Part 1: Japanese Friendship Garden

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The only thing my friend Julia and I planned prior to my visit to Phoenix was a behind-the-scenes tour of Frank Lloyd Wright’s Taliesin West. I’ve visited her periodically since she moved to Phoenix in 1991 but have not done many touristy things. We usually go hiking and frequent the botanical garden. This visit would be different. We planned a couple of other excursions over coffee our first morning. I suggested the Japanese Friendship Garden because it had popped up on a few different websites. She wasn’t too optimistic about that activity. It had been a while since she had visited, had meh feelings about it and wasn’t too eager to go back. But, thank goodness, she was willing to give it another try.

We arrived at the garden a little after 11am and noticed a guided tour in progress. Julia was clever enough to ask if we could join that group. Soon after, we were listening to detailed information about the purposefully constructed garden.

This image is from the back of the garden, but seems a good place to start. The sculpture of the Shachi, a gift from their sister-city, Himeji in 1996, is a mythical fish with a tiger’s head often seen as protection against fire and disaster. The Himeji castle, in Himeji, Japan, resembles a heron and has been guarded by Shachi since the 1600s. The castle, one of few remaining in Japan, has survived earthquakes, wars, fires, and WWII bombings.
The centerpiece of the garden – a 12ft. waterfall. True to its design, you have to walk a bit into the garden before you hear or see it. Their website explains the stroll garden’s Miegakure design (hide and reveal) well.
“…the entirety of the garden is never visible at once. Instead, the viewer is led to uncover intentionally hidden sights and sounds of the landscape while strolling along its curved paths.”
Trimming the pine trees in the niwaki style. Notice how the trees look like they’re sculpted by the wind? The tree trimming only happens twice a year. I was amazed at how many branches were on the ground. Another lady pointed out the shoes. They’re Jika-tabi – traditional Japanese work boots with soft soles and split toes.

Lilies symbolize purity and grace in Japanese gardens. There were at least three different varieties in bloom during our visit.
Another of the pine trees that is trimmed to resemble clouds. The various shades of greens is a feature of the garden.
 This pagoda brings a mountain-temple aesthetic into the garden’s mountain zone which is 14 feet above the others and on the backside of the waterfall. The other three zones of the garden are grasslands, woodlands, and beaches.
The “beach” is made of hand-picked stones placed to resemble the scales of a fish. Those “scales” are included in the 1,500 tons of rock and stone used in the construction of this 3.5 acre garden.
Our tour guide was legit. Here’s a photo of his bonsai tree he donated to the garden.

Now that you know the details of the Phoenix Friendship Garden, here is some of its background. Phoenix and Himeji, Japan became sister cities in 1976. Almost a decade later, the a Japanese style garden in Phoenix was proposed by Himeji Mayor Matsuji Totani. After another decade of planning and construction by landscape architects and craftsmen from Himeji, the first phase of the garden was complete. The garden, named Rohoen, was fully opened in 2002.

The name “Ro Ho En” itself is meaningful: Ro (鷺) = heron, a symbol of Himeji City and its Castle – the UNESCO World Heritage site I mentioned earlier, Ho (鳳) = phoenix (the mythical bird) representing Phoenix, and En (園) = garden in Japanese.  I’m hopeful you’re able to see Rohoen and hear about all of its symbolic beauty one day.

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