There are places where a single word seems to suggest itself. Here, it is green: gardens tucked into ancient cities and sprawling metropolises alike, offering a quieter way through the urban landscape. A few lines from Osip Mandelstam accompany the journey, from Rome to Kyoto.

Green in Grey

"The blades of grass growing in the streets of St. Petersburg are the first shoots of a virgin forest. [...] Not speed, but the cheerful grass that breaks out from beneath the city stones. [...]
In this realm of the spirit, devoid of humankind, every tree will be a dryad and every phenomenon will speak of its own metamorphosis." 

Above, the garden at Aman Kyoto. To the left, the terraced gardens of Hotel de Russie in Rome. To the right, the Mediterranean greens of La Mamounia in Marrakech, painted by Winston Churchill.