KYOTO, JAPAN
I visited the Shisen-do Temple gardens, the site of a mountain hermitage built by Ishikawa Jozan, a master calligrapher and the founder of the sencha tradition of steeped tea. Jozan retired at the young age of 33 and began to study Zen Buddhism and also devoted himself to gardening, pouring his genius into Shesen-do Temple until his death at the age of 90. The garden is the most serene on the planet and is a form of meditation in and of itself. Visiting this garden inspired me to learn more about Buddhism and I did a course in meditation on my return to Australia.
PALM SPRINGS
The Elrod House is a residence in Palm Springs, California, designed by American Architect John Lautner and constructed in 1968. The incredibly courageous architecture of this house was well ahead of its time, including many other architectural examples in Palm Springs. These homes taught me to be fearless in my future design concepts.
SRI LANKA
Visiting Sri Lanka was for me an exploration of my personal heritage, given my mother was born in Galle. Meeting with architect Geoffrey Bawa, experiencing the history of places like Sigiriya rock, as well as the food and fabulous people allowed me to better understand my core beliefs and design philosophies.
UDAIPUR, INDIA
Udaipur is hands down the most romantic city I've been to. The architecture and the culture took my breath away and any chance I get I want to get back to Rajasthan. Udaipur enhanced the way I looked at ''destination design''.
AFRICA
Never have I seen a race intrinsically connected to our Mother Earth. The passion of the African people mixed with the deep archeological history, the sublime safaris and plethora of beautiful wildlife makes me want to go and sit in those sunsets forever. Africa cemented my mission and passion to strive to be a guardian of the environment.
After nine best selling books on gardens, Jamie Durie has released his first on interior design. Living Design (Lantern, $59.99, with co-author Nadine Bush) explores ''Transterior'' homes, where the interior and exterior of a home merge.
See Penguin.com.au
