Nara - Neiraku Art Museum and Isuien Garden

The Isuien Garden, with the small Neiraku Museum, opened in 1969. The garden is a landscaped garden in Shakkei style (the "borrowed landscape", in which the surroundings of the garden are incorporated in the total effect). In the nearer part of the garden are two teahouses, the Seishuan and the Sanshutei, and a waiting room (Teishuken). The rear part of the garden, laid out in 1899, has the South Gate of the Todaiji and Mount Wakakusa as its backdrop. On the island in the little lake is a stone from the foundations of the Buddha Hall; the stepping stones are old millstones used in the manufacture of fabric dyes. In the thatched teahouse, the Hyoshintei, green tea is sometimes served.