In a peaceful valley near San Jose, Calif., sits a cultural jewel of old Japan. Hakone Gardens and Retreat Center is the oldest Japanese residential garden in the Western Hemisphere. Built in the 1920s by Japanese architects and landscape gardeners in what was then known as the "Valley of the Heart’s Delight," Hakone is a premiere example of Japanese Edo design dating to the 17th century.
In the two redwood teahouses and four individual gardens, art and nature merge seamlessly. Multi-tiered waterfalls and koi ponds, groves of bamboo, stonework and lanterns are placed harmoniously along strolling paths that meander among manicured Japanese black pines, irises, lace-leaf maples, wisteria arbors and flowering cherries. It is a cultivation of nature in miniature designed to create the experience of timeless beauty.
For years the gardens flourished, but by 1966, water damage and dry rot had forced them to close. Saved by the city of Saratoga, Hakone began a long process of restoration directed by a 14th generation architect to the Japanese Imperial Household. Ponds, waterfalls and stone pathways were repaired and overgrown shrubs and trees carefully pruned.
Today, thanks in part to a partnership between the National Trust for Historic Preservation, Save America’s Treasures, and HGTV, this historic site is once again a blissful dwelling place of beauty and tranquility.
Sites in the 2004-2005 Restore America: A Salute to Preservation campaign.
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