Last week, my husband and I invited my parents to visit Kyuan-ji in Ikeda City, Osaka. I looked up some good spots for plum blossoms, and this temple was one of the online recommendations.

Kyuan-ji was built in 725. In 1140, the temple once burned down but it was rebuilt in 1145. During the Azuchi-momoyama period (1568 to 1600), Toyotomi Hideyohi , one of the most important figures in Japanese history, visited the temple and held a tea ceremony.

When we saw this statue in the picture below, we talked about who it was. We tried to read the name on it, but none of us could read. A person in the temple later explained who he was. He was a leader of the area. I guess our voice was so loud because of my dad's hearing problem, so everybody could hear. It was embarrassing.

My 94-year-old dad doesn't look his age. He stands straight and enjoys taking photos. He was so excited to visit this old temple. I was glad to take him here.

My parents had been looking forward to seeing pretty plum blossoms, but unfortunately, there were a few plum trees.

The stone in the picture below is called 腰掛石 (koshikakeishi) in Japanese, which Toyotomi Hideyoshi sat on it. It was so cool that the stone is still there.

We found a weeping plum tree, and its blossoms were in full bloom.

We saw lots of Japanese maple trees and hydrangeas, so my parents said they would love to come back there during those seasons. It must be breathtaking in fall.

When we approached to the pond, lots of koi fish swam toward us.

On the way back to our car, we came across some cute plum blossoms. My dad told that it doesn't matter how many plum trees he sees. The more important thing for photographing is what pictures he takes, even though there is the only one plum blossom. I'm impressed by his words.

We enjoyed exploring this temple and then headed to a place we would have lunch together. I'll write about in in a different journal entry.

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