Located within the grounds of the Meitetsu Inuyama Hotel is the Urakuen Garden and the Jo-an Tea Ceremony Room. The Jo-an tea house is a national treasure of Japan and is one of the three best tea houses in the country. The Jo-an tea house was constructed by Oda Nobunaga's younger brother, Oda Nagamasu (also known as Urakusai.) Oda Nobunaga was a powerful warlord and samurai daimyo during the late 16th century. Nobunaga was one of the Three Great Unifiers of Japan and is known for starting the unification towards the end of the Warring States period. His younger brother Nagamasu, in addition to building the Jo-an tea house was a practitioner of the tea ceremony and eventually started his own tea ceremony school.
The Jo-an tea house was originally built in Kyoto in 1618, then later moved to Tokyo and Kanagawa before finally being settled in Inuyama in 1972.
While we were staying in Inuyama we were given tickets to the garden and tea house and decided to visit it on our free day. Walking through the garden was a very peaceful experience. I don't have any pictures of the actual tea ceremony since we were not allowed to take pictures inside the tea house but it was a great experience and I urge anyone who has the chance to attend one to do so.
The Jo-an tea house was originally built in Kyoto in 1618, then later moved to Tokyo and Kanagawa before finally being settled in Inuyama in 1972.
While we were staying in Inuyama we were given tickets to the garden and tea house and decided to visit it on our free day. Walking through the garden was a very peaceful experience. I don't have any pictures of the actual tea ceremony since we were not allowed to take pictures inside the tea house but it was a great experience and I urge anyone who has the chance to attend one to do so.