Sento Imperial Palace, Kyoto

　Although advance booking is required, the Sento Imperial Palace, located within the Kyoto Imperial Palace grounds, offers free guided tours. The term ‘Sento’ originally referred to the dwelling of an immortal, and by extension, it came to denote the residence of an emperor who had abdicated.

　The highlight is the strolling garden designed by Kobori Enshū and others. Enshū was a daimyō and tea master active in the early Edo period, who also worked as a landscape architect, renovating gardens such as the Ninomaru Garden at Nijo Castle. 

　In particular, the 110,000 pebbles said to be laid out in the South Pond were reportedly transported by the people of Okubo Tadamasa, Lord of Odawara and then Kyoto Shoshidai (Governor of Kyoto), in exchange for 1.8 litres of rice per stone.

　Although the hot weather continues in Kyoto, this is a fine place to seek some cool respite.