Eric La Fountaine has been very helpful to me these past few weeks while I work to meet a deadline, so once again, here are a couple of his photographs and a write-up!

Vancouver has been graced with a few good snowfalls this year. These photos were taken late January, in Nitobe Memorial Garden. The garden was not yet open for the day, so the fresh layer of snow was undisturbed, except for the few paths that had been cleared by horticulturist, Junji Shinada, who has tended the garden for over 15 years. The white snow outlines the graceful form of the cherry trees and highlights the bridges, ponds and other structural elements typically found in Japanese gardens.

Opened in 1960, Nitobe Memorial Garden is one of the most authentic Japanese gardens found outside of Japan. Professor Kannosuke Mori of Chiba University came from Japan to design the garden and remained to oversee construction until the official opening. The planning and construction of the memorial was chronicled in the garden's journal, Davidsonia, by John W. Neill, now deceased, who was the University of British Columbia landscape architect appointed as the university liaison to work with Professor Mori during construction.