Senden Park

"During summer the banks of the Kamogawa Delta, where the Takano and Kama rivers meet, fill with sunbathers and picnickers. It’s also a popular place for splashing around: you’ll see residents frolicking among the large stones that span the waters. These concrete blocks – some of which are carved in the form of birds and turtles – were placed here in the 1990s to stabilise the riverbed. Nearby are the forested grounds of the Shimogamo Shrine, which appeared in The Tale of Genji, an 11th-century Japanese masterpiece that’s billed as the world’s first novel."