I was deeply saddened to learn of the sudden demise of my dear friend Giris whom I have known
for more than thirty years.

I first met Giris when he came to our Bonsai Centre in the late 1980’s to learn more about bonsai.
He visited us regularly and right from the outset I could sense that he genuinely loved bonsai and
all the other allied arts such as Yoga and Japanese gardening. He was of course an authority on
Yoga in his own right.

Giris believed that bonsai and Japanese gardening could bring tranquility to the lives of busy
people and that is how I became involved in some of his prestigious residential developments.

I have always enjoyed working with Giris even though some may have found him very demanding.

I liked his straight no nonsense style and I like to think that he found me to be on the same wave
length. We got on extremely well and his love for Japanese gardens and bonsai can be seen in
quite a few of his London residential developments of which Islington Square is the culmination of
that philosophy. He was a pioneer in this field as no one had dared to use this type of design
before.

His enduring love for Bonsai is evidenced in the many bonsai that adorn his London office and I
am sure his spirit will live on in his trees.

May his soul rest in peace and tranquillity.

Om Shanti Om.

Peter Chan