Kunio Kobayashi is a world reknowned Bonsai Grand master. When I visited his garden Shunka-en in 2014 I knew I would have to come back and stay longer than just a couple of hours. The immense beauty of Shunka-en can hardly be described in words. To me this place somehow is heaven on earth. Beautiful Bonsai everywhere, water, pebbles, rocks, trees, bamboo, fantastic japanese garden elements surround you. Shunka-en is more like a small castle and a park than like a Bonsai museum. With its many fantastic Tokonomas inside (Bonsai presentation areas) and the fantastic collection of antique Bonsai pots, with all this beauty so condensed it was for sure that I had to come back. And so I did. In 2015 I took the chance and became apprentice at Shunka-en for two months. A time I will never forget. So full of emotions, of sureal situations, of impressions, of encounters, of learnings, of beauty. People often ask me about what I learned. And each time I tell them the same. Shunka-en mostly taught me things I cannot tell in words. What I learned was about the heart of Bonsai, the spirit of Bonsai and the feelings behind Bonsai. Alltough I had heard a lot about how apprentices tradtionally live and learn Bonsai in Japan, I often had a hard time being Western. But the experience was such a deep and intense one that I am thankful for every single second I spent in Shunka-en. For the first time in my life I wrote a diary entry each day to later recall what I went through. Though many moments seemed so unreal and fantastic that people wouldn't believe. Therefore I decided to just show a few photos and let you think about what you see.
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