Glover Gardens were quite surprising. They are located in an area of Nagasaki known as Ishibashi (Stone Bridge) and on a steep hill overlooking the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries shipyard. Thomas Glover was a scot who arrived in Japan as a young trader in 1859.
The top of the garden is reached by escalator and two long moving walkways. A route then follows a path down the hill to the entrance gate again.
It’s very early spring, so few plants are out in flower, but the focal point of the garden isn’t so much the plants but a collection of western style houses that have been relocated here in a garden style setting.
This wasn’t quite what we were expecting, but it was a fascinating piece of history in a very attractive environment.
Across the valley is another area known as ‘The Hollander Slope’ where a small row of western houses are located. Again, this is part of the area where the first Europeans in Japan lived after the end of the closed period.
