Another venture during daughter and grandson’s visit was the Japanese Garden. It is not a colorful season, like spring or fall would be; however, there is a subtle beauty to the various greens.
It is more meditative than a place to run and play, so we wondered about its appeal to a 3 1/2-year-old. The ticket clerk offered a treasure hunt map, which Logan guarded carefully for most of the visit.
He spotted the first item all by himself, but had to be helped to find others.
Spotted instantly by Logan, it was at the beginning of the path. ETA a description from the brochure: “The antique 5-tiered stone pagoda lantern [was] given to Portland from its sister city, Sapporo, Japan. The stones at the base of the pagoda are in the shape of the island of Hokkaido. The red stone represents Sapporo.”
The rest were less obvious.
A pointed finger led him to see the heron sculptures; I don’t think he ever saw the frog. (It doesn’t even show up in my photo–distant, small and moss covered.)
The deer chaser was fascinating.
We watched several rounds while the water flowed from the top bamboo to the lower one; the lower one filled up and tipped, making a sound. Luckily it didn’t take too long to fill.
Buddha and the Animals was a bit abstract and took some convincing.
His mother pointed out the number of animals on the map and the number of small stones in the sand garden, and he was finally satisfied.
The Jizo was spotted by only one adult in the group and required retracing steps.
Doesn’t he look like he is giving a lecture about it?
Hunger pangs decreased interest in the map; food not being allowed in the garden, we worked on getting to the exit and a picnic area near the International Test Rose Garden.
The two gardens are among the sites in Washington Park.
knitNkwilt 
We have a Japanese garden in Austin Tx and my favorite picture of my daughter as a young child of about 7 is of her kneeling on the stepping stones in the pond.
She was not even dressed up but casual. We did go there once or twice a year just for the green beauty. Other parts of the Zilker Gardens were so pretty too. A huge rose garden. Just a lovely place to spend some time.
It looks like a wonderfully peaceful and meditative place to visit… I think those bamboo waterfall things are called deer-scarers, they make a sort of clack when the weight of water tips the tube, and that was meant to scare deer out of the garden. Your grandson has a very expressive face, what a cutie he is!
I’ve loved your other pictures of the Japanese Gardens but these with the adventures with your grandson are just too precious! He sounds like he’s bright and fun and will keep you energetic. I suspect you are enjoying their visit immensely and will require a nap when they leave – lol.
Kathy T. in Tampa
Wonderful photos thanks for sharing!
You’ve mentioned this garden before. We don’t have one near us now, but I have enjoyed Japanese gardens in the past, so I appreciated your pictures.
I never even knew all those things were in the garden. Of course, I only know what you post. =) How interesting that was. I hope to see it in person some day.