Suzhou, the City of the Gardens

About Suzhou

Suzhou was always famous for being a center of culture, civilization, and beauty. Many of the important Chinese artists, politicians, writers, and authors originated from Suzhou. The city of Suzhou has been included lately in many tours to China. The city of Suzhou has even developed its own local culture and traditions that are based upon refinements and sophistication.Being famous all around the world for having the most fabulous gardens, Suzhou has always been an attractive city that is usually added to many travel packages to China.

The city is also famous around China for having its own delicate that is very tasty and enjoyable. A famous old saying in the Chinese culture states that listening to two people speaking in the delicate of Suzhou is more pleasant than listening to two lovers or the most amusing musical tunes.Suzhou is one of the most enjoyable cities to explore in China and there are many travelers from around the world who visit the city every year.Being near the famous Shanghai, Suzhou is always worth visiting because of its gardens and many attractions. Shanghai and Suzhou are often added to together to group tours to China.

The Blue Wave Pavilion

The Blue Wave Pavilion is the most ancient garden in Suzhou and it dates back to the 12th century and it was established during the reign of the Song Dynasty.
The garden has a central pound that reflects the image of all the surrounding buildings. Families from around the world who spend their vacations in China often visit the gardens of Suzhou..There are around 100 lattice forms that give the guests a variety of scenes to view when they walk in the corridor over the water.
The name of the garden, the blue wave pavilion, is derived from the pavilion located at the top of the hill situated in the central pond of the garden. The pure fragrance pavilion has some examples of the furniture of the Song dynasty and it is created from gnarled banyan suite.

The Temple of Hanshan

This temple is famous for being the main theme of one of the popular poems of the Tang Dynasty that described the scene and the sound when the huge bell of the temple rings at midnight.The temple looks actually more like a touristic attraction rather than a holy place for worship. This is because of the large number of guests who visit the temple regularly during their holidays in China.

The Garden of the Humble Administrator

More than half of the gardens and orchards of Suzhou consist of ponds and lakes. These gardens are among the features that attract many tourists who travel to China to visit Suzhou.This garden was established during the 16th century by Wang Xianjun, who was fired from the imperial system.Xianjun has chosen the name of his garden from a famous ancient Chinese poem that says “Humble people rule”.

Joyous Garden

Being the newest garden to be established in Suzhou, the Joyous Garden was constructed in 1874. Many affordable tours to China would include a visit to Suzhou and its large gardens. This is why the garden has copied some of the designs of other famous gardens in the city.  This includes a large pond in the center, copied from the Master of the Nets, and rooms that are simple to the Garden of the Administrator.

The most unusual characteristic of the Joyous Garden that is not common among other gardens in Suzhou is the large mirror that is actually inspired by a legend of establisher of the Zen Buddhism who stood for years staring at a wall to reach enlighten.The architect of the Joyous Garden has positioned the mirror in an opposite place in front of the pavilion. Custom tours to China would often include a number of visits to the monuments of the country. In the summer, the garden has a wonderful teahouse that would a marvelous chance for tourists to taste the distinctive Chinese tea.

The Garden of Lingering

The Garden of Lingering is one of the most interesting gardens in Suzhou. It is featured with corridors that open into rooms that lead to the main pond of the garden.The garden is full of wonderful unexpected architectural wonders like what a guest can see in one corner; a skylight shed light a planted section of the garden in a special way.

The Mandarin Duck Hall of the Garden of Lingering is a marvelous example of the garden architecture in China with a wonderful moon gate that is decorated with roses and vines. Just behind the garden, there is a huge rock that is around 70 foot tall that moved here from the Taihu Lake. China tours these days have become quite flexible to enable the tourists to add all the monuments they prefer to visit like the gardens of Suzhou.When guests explore the halls of the garden, they usually listen to live music that is often played all day long making the visit quite enjoyable.

The Garden of the Lion Grove

The most significant feature of the Garden of the Lion Grove is that it borrows many weird formations from the nearby Taihu Lake to have a distinctive moonscape. There are also a large number of artificial caves that surround the main central pond of the garden.A famous old Chinese saying states that if you talk to the rocks, you will never need to visit a physiologist. Maybe this is why the garden is full of caves and rock formations.The garden of the Lion Cove has a wonderful teahouse in the second floor main pavilion that overlooks the central pond of the garden.

The Master of the Nets Garden

All the Suzhou forms and designs are reflected in the Master of Nets Garden like the rocky hills, layers of plants and flower, and a main pavilion overlooking the central pond. The garden is usually crowded in the morning with a large number of group tours to China visiting the place. This is why it is recommended sometimes to visit the garden at night to wonder freely from one hall to the other listening to the marvelous live music.

The Pagoda of the North Temple

 The Pagoda of the North Temple is one of the landmarks of the style and significant design of Suzhou. Tourists who travel to china would often visit the Suzhou for its many gardens and monuments.This temple, overlooking the whole old town of Suzhou, has a long history that dates back to the 8th century in the period of the Three Kingdoms.The Pagoda has nine levels and in order for the guests to get the most astonishing views of the old town, they should climb maybe to the 7th or the 8th floor.Another section that would be worth visiting in the Pagoda of the North Temple is the Copper Buddha Hall that was constructed in 1985.

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