To celebrate the Showa Emperor's wedding, Japanese volunteers who were living in Taiwan sent this building as a gift. As a rest area built above water, it was constructed to be a cool place in the middle of a summer walk.
Taking in design elements of Taiwanese architecture, the building also uses Taiwanese Ceder. That Taiwanese Cedar can also be seen in the forest that surrounds the building. Just taking in the whole outside of the building is beautiful, but take a look at the Japanese garden from the inside of the building. The scenery between the railings and doors seems to be like the reflection of a screen in a movie theater.
It is exactly like a movie screen. If you think that while staring you can see the narrative of the scene unfold. The people in the garden are the stars of the movie. Try to imagine the story of each person. The lover who has just broken up. The person who is thinking about quitting their job. The boy with the girl, why are they all here in Shinjuku Gyoen?
There is a story in everyone. There may even be someone here for the same reason as you. It is a miracle to meet a stranger you saw once before, in this time and this place. Are the those you are passing really people you have never met? Or maybe you can see someone you have met one time before. On the side of the road, or in the train, people are constantly living while passing one another. To reunite, is a miracle that is probably more common than we think.