Enso-an - Refined cozy house in heart of Kyoto

The house was fully restored in 2017 by an architect and a designer who are both specialists in Japanese architecture. It combines modern comfort with the charms of a traditional dwelling: cob walls, shoji and fusuma (sliding doors made of rice paper or wood), rooms with tatami mats, bamboo and soft lighting.
Description of the house
As you enter the house, you can see a stone garden through the windows of the entrance. There is a large kitchen / dining room great for large groups to eat and relax together. Next to the dining room is a tatami room which is rather like a chashitsu, a room traditionally used for tea ceremony. This room can be used both as a living room or as an extension of the double bedroom. A bed can be set up in this room if needed. On the other side of the hallway is a comfortable bathroom, restroom and the laundry room with a washing machine.
Upstairs, you will find two large bedrooms, one twin room and a tatami bedroom (4 futons) as well as a small shower room and another restroom.The house owner, a conductor living in Kyoto, has named it Enso-an. In Japanese, "Enso" means musical performance but also refers to a circle, one of the great symbols of Zen Buddhism. "An" signifies hermitage.
The neighborhood
Enso-an is the former house of a traditional doll manufacturer, located a stone’s throw from the Gion district and from ninenzaka, the most working-class area of Kyoto. In the heart of the peaceful potters’ district of Higashiyama, the house is nestled in the pedestrianised alleys beneath Kiyomizu-dera, the famous temple with Unesco world heritage status.