Find Serenity at the Nitobe Memoirial Garden

The Nitobe Memorial Garden is located in the forest at the edge of Vancouver, British Columbia. A spectacular portion of the UBC landscape, the Nitobe Memorial Garden was designed as a memorial to Inazo Nitobe, a Japanese diplomat and politician also known for his written work and teachings.  Nitobe's goal was to "become a bridge across the Pacific."  The garden lies on two and a half acres of land.  Its landscape was designed and constructed by landscape architects and gardeners with recommendation from the Japanese government.  Each component is in harmony, placed with deliberation and maintained with the utmost attention to detail.  Several of the plants including some maples, cherry trees, azaleas and irises were imported from Japan. Waterfalls, streams, the gazing pond, the plants and every stone are representative of nature. Several lanterns accent the property, including a Nitobe lantern that was erected by friends of Inazo Nitobe.  

As you enter the garden, to your left is Ichibō-an, the tea house  which is surrounded by a roji tea garden and an inner garden.  To your right is a path that encircles the gazing pond  which is the central focus of the garden.  There are tours that are highly recommended to take, specifically during spring cherry blossom, summer for the irises, and autumn for the splendour of the colouring of the maples.  I went in August and it was just as luxurious but I'd love to come back in spring and again in the autumn.

The garden is designed to suggest a passing of time: hours, days, seasons, years.  One could easily spend hours here at a time.  It is the perfect place for personal reflection and meditation.  It is serenity, peace, and breathless beauty all in one location.  

I hope you enjoy the photos here.  May they entice you to plan a visit to the garden soon.

We saw Edgar Muenala perform at Granville Island while we were there in August.  His music perfectly complements the beauty and serenity found in a Japanese garden.  I hope you enjoy this number.

Love and Harmony - Respect Mother Nature.  Performing Far East Theme.

Could This be the Best Japanese Garden?

Last month I visited the Nitobe Memorial Garden at the UBC in Vancouver.  It has long been on my bucket list and I wasn't disappointed.  It is so serene that I could stay here for hours.  The accompanying video isn't mine, I found it on YouTube.  It will give you an idea of why I say this is the best Japanese garden I've ever been to.

Bucket List and Facing Fear at the Greenheart Canopy Walkway at the UBC.

photo taken by my husband

For a lot of people, this is nothing.  Kids run across the thing for real! But for me, it was a matter of facing a fear.  A fear of losing some of my control, a fear of heights, but mostly a fear of falling down should this network of walkways fail me.

Since I was a young adult watching The Canadian Gardener starring David Tarrant, I wanted to visit the UBC Gardens.  As an adult I put it on my bucket list and earlier this month my husband, a friend and I went while vacationing in Vancouver, visiting our son and his partner.

The gardens were, of course, spectacular but what I will never forget is the experience of walking the Greenway Canopy Walkway.  I'd first learned of it from the UBC Botanical Garden website and then it became a must do, another bucket list item.

I'm the kind of person who likes to live safe.  I don't take risks.  I must feel in control of myself. So this experience was a real stretch for me.  I had excellent cheerleaders.  My husband coaxed me along and Van kept calling out to me "think flowers, think trees, think (Pappa Roti) buns" (which are the most fabulous thing ever!) It all helped and I accomplished the several stretches of walkways that bridged the distance between the canopies of the forest around us.  When I dared to look around me, it was breathtaking. Honestly, though, I spent a lot of time just focusing on a point straight ahead of me.  Every step caused the bridge to sway, but I found the faster I went, the easier it was. Most of my moments of appreciation were on the platforms around the trees where one bridge met the next.  Would I recommend it?  Wholeheartedly!!

The Greenheart Canopy Walkway at the UBC Gardens was awarded "New Garden Experience of the Year," a Canadian Garden Tourism Award this spring; sponsored by the Canadian Nursery Landscape Association. Organizations and individuals who have distinguished themselves in the creation and promotion of gardens as a tourism attraction are the criteria from which winners are chosen for Garden Tourism Awards. 

http://www.botanicalgarden.ubc.ca/blog/2015/greenheart-experience-award

The walkway is named for the Greenheart International Development Corporation which has placed several of these walkways through parks and protected areas in an effort to create awareness and to educate people of the necessity of conservation.   greenheart.ca

- See more at: http://www.botanicalgarden.ubc.ca/blog/2015/greenheart-experience-award#sthash.rxiXwgav.dpuf

CANADIAN GARDEN TOURISM AWARD RECIPIENT 

New Garden Experience of the Year

UBC Botanical Garden Greenheart Canopy Walk, BC 

Sponsored by: Canadian Nursery Landscape Association - See more at: http://www.botanicalgarden.ubc.ca/blog/2015/greenheart-experience-award#sthash.rxiXwgav.dpuf

At these intersecting points plaques were placed encouraging the visitor to further appreciate the beauty of the forest and to learn what they can do to help prevent devastating deforestation.  

About the UBC Botanical Garden:

Located in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada; The UBC Botanical Garden is known to be Canada's oldest university botanic garden to have operated continuously since establishment in 1916. Under the directorship of BC's first provincial botanist, the garden was established with the mission to research the native flora of British Columbia (BC).  It has since broadened its spectrum to include research and conservation through teaching and public displays of temperate plants from around the world.  Topics of research include:  plant adaptation, evolution, genomics, plant physiology and biotic interactions, phytochemistry, plant biotechnology, and plant breeding.  The University of British Columbia has an international reputation as one of North Americas's leading research institutions.  

http://www.botanicalgarden.ubc.ca/canopy-walkway

#GreenheartCanopyWalkway

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#BucketList

#FacingFear

#VancouverGardenDestination

#NewGardenExperienceoftheYear

#CanadianGardenTourismAward

#VancouverTourism

#LovingVancouver

*since a reader decided to Google Pappa Roti, I decided to add a couple photos here for reference:

The next time you're in Vancouver, you simply must look up 

Pappa Roti on Robson Street and have their sweet coffee buns!  Crusty on the outside, fluffy on the inside - lather with your choice of a selection of toppings. 

(I love Nutella with bananas and cream cheese with strawberry.)  

"An indulgent treat."  (www.papparoti.ca) They're to die for!!!

Eye Movement Study at UBC to Study How the Western Eye Interprets Japanese Pruned Plants

UBC Botanical Garden and Centre for Plant Research

Additional Western-raised adults are needed for an eye-movement study on how Japanese-pruned plants are "seen". Volunteers must be between18 and 59, raised in a Western country (especially Canada!) since the age of 3 and able to see 1.5m without eyeglasses or hard contacts. All volunteers meeting the inclusion criteria are welcome, but additional males in particular are needed. For more info, visit: http://ht.ly/6wymk


The UBC (University of British Columbia Botanical Garden and Centre for Plant Research) is located in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada).

Take a Stroll through UBC Native Garden

Take a stroll with Alivia Prattas, a UBC Botanical Garden workstudy student, through the UBC Native Garden.  These photos were taken and posted on Flickr in November 2010 by Alivia. The Native Garden is comprised mostly of plants that are native to the Maritime southwest of BC. 

Though I've never personally visited the UBC Botanical Garden, it is on my Bucket List of gardens I must visit someday. 


56 photos are in this photostream.

photo by Daniel Mosquin