Japanese-style gardens in Chile

Japanese gardens can have a variety of styles which are always evocative of a taste for nature. However, despite the effect of naturalness, all elements are well-thought out in these gardens. Some, like the famous dry landscape garden of the Zen temple in Kyoto Ryoanji, have caused the admiration of many visitors and are world famous. 

There  are gardens around the world that were designed according to Japanese aesthetic taste. Chile is a country particularly fortunate to have several examples of Japanese style gardens, among which are the Garden of the Heart in the city of La Serena and the Japanese Garden of the Metropolitan Park in Santiago.

As regards the Japanese Garden of Santiago, which was annexed to the Cerro San Cristóbal, its construction began in 1978. It was refurbished in 1997, the same year Prince Hitachi visited Chile. The emperor's second son, Prince Akishino, also visited and planted a cherry tree in bloom during a brief visit to Chile held on November 4, 2006.

This pleasant and quiet garden offers a magnificent view of Santiago and is an interesting example of Japanese gardens. With an area of 3200 square meters on two levels, it is a typical concentration of various elements of Japanese gardening, such as stone lanterns, water wheel and pond with lotus flowers, as well plant species such as cherry trees, lotus flowers, acer japonica, creeping cotoneaster and azaleas. Throughout the year, typical Japanese activities, such as "the way of the tea" (chado) or meetings to contemplate the flowers (hanami).

The garden in the city of La Serena, begun in 1984 and completed in 1994 in Parque Pedro de Valdivia, is one of the largest of its kind in the world. It is an area of approximately 26,000 square-meters that bring together different types of Japanese gardens: the walk garden, tea garden and the dry landscape garden, whose design, it is said, was inspired by the famous Ryoanji garden.

When walking through this Chilean-Japanese garden, one can see several Japanese construction features: its waterfall that feeds the lake, its boat dock, Turtle Islands (symbolizing longevity) and the Crane Islands (symbol of prosperity), wells, paths and stone lanterns, bridges of stone and wood trellis with flowers, rest areas and a pagoda.

Among its elements, the use of green areas, water, stone, wood and bamboo dominates. In terms of plant and animal life, there are fish, ducks, swans and many species of birds, insects, flowers, trees and shrubs. All the beauty displayed in this garden can be seen as a sign of how wonderful understanding and friendship between countries can be.

Recently dry landscape gardens, in addition to the Garden of the Heart, have been set up in the Fifth Region and the Metropolitan Region. Santiago’s is located specifically at the University Finis Terrae (Pedro de Valdivia 1509).

This year, coinciding with the 110th anniversary of the establishment of official relations between Japan and Chile, two new Japanese-style gardens are being designed and built. One of them is currently underway at the Faculty of Humanities, University of Santiago (Av. Libertador Bernardo O'Higgins 3363). The other, still awaiting the assessment of FONDART is projected as a "dry landscape garden" for the Faculty of Arts at the University of Chile (Las Encinas 3370). It aims to create a peaceful area to draw Chileans into the aesthetics of Zen Buddhism. It will be effective in conveying a feeling of purity and serenity to the observer.