GAiGO Students' Voices

Hello, I'm Ryo.

The other day, GAiGO students went on a half-day school trip to Sengan-en and Shoko Shuseikan. Sengan-en was the second garden of the Shimazu clan, and Shoko Shuseikan was their factory to promote industrialization in Japan in the late Edo era. The school trip was organized as part of Ms. Shimada's class of Japanese culture. Before the class early in the morning, we were worried about the bad weather, but fortunately we had no rain all day long.

Soon after we passed the entrance gate of Sengan-en, we were welcomed by a big iron cannon, which was made there to fight with foreign menace of invasion. Around two hundred years ago, Satsuma was the precursor of the policy of increasing wealth and military power. When they were defeated in the Anglo-Satsuma war, they noticed how powerful the industrialized countries were. They began to learn and introduce western technologies. The cannon is a symbol of that policy.

In the garden, we enjoyed beautiful, magnificent scenery. To my surprise, Mt. Sakurajima, which is seen over Kinko bay from Sengan-en, is included as part of the scenery. This gardening style is called "Shakkei," one of the traits of traditional Japanese gardens. The landscape over the garden in the distance is borrowed as part of it.