J is for Japanese Tea Room and Garden

Dick first visited the Japanese Tea Room and Garden in San Antonio, Texas more than 50 years ago - yes, I said 50! He thought the garden was lovely then and it was high on his list of "must see's" when we set out on the road in our RV. 

The garden is still there, and it is still lovely as you will see in the pictures.But, as with most history, there is a sad story to go with the tea gardens.

The first thing you notice when entering the Japanese Tea Garden is that the sign over the entrance reads: 

CHINESE TEA GARDEN

The Japanese family that owned and ran the gardens and tea house were "relocated" to an interment camp during WWII and never returned to live there again. One child, now in her 80's, did come for the dedication of the tea gardens as city park a few years ago. You can imagine how emotional that must have been!

Because of anti-Japanese sentiment during the war, the sign was changed to read Chinese Tea Garden, and for historical preservation, it was left that way.

Here is a picture of the original Japanese Tea House in 1931:



The original tea house, with the children sitting on the wall.

Walking through the peacful sunken garden, you can imagine these girls chasing each other up and down the paths, playing hide and seek, or leaning over the bridges to peer into the koi ponds. We could almost hear the echoes of their laughter ....

                     .... Walk the paths with us and see if you can hear them too ...

RVPainter at the entrance to the Japanese Tea Garden. Notice that the sign
reads "Chinese Tea Garden."

The sunken garden consists of pathways that meander around koi ponds and beautiful flowers.

This tree could tell many stories