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Posted On Monday, September 6, 2010 at
at
11:26 PM
by Alvin
The waterways and gardens in the province of Jiangsu (江蘇) had been known as the most serene, picturesque and inspiring in China for over a thousand years. Artists, scholars, musicians and avid travellers from all over, flog to this area of China to experience the finesse, subtlety and beauty of the famous gardens of 拙政園 and 獅子林 in the tidy city of Suzhou (蘇州); as well as the "most beautiful village built around canals in China" - Zhou Zhang (周莊). Firstly the famous gardens in Suzhou differed from those in Beijing in that the Suzhou gardens had always been owned and cared for by private owners (私家園林) and those in Beijing were known as "Royal Gardens" (皇家園林) which had been the back gardens and playgrounds for past Chinese emperors and royalties. We spent a good three to four hours in 拙政園 (known peculiarly as The Humble Administrator's Gardens...) and strolling along narrow alleyways and admiring the lotus, waterlilies and pines. Although as usual, the Gardens were swamped with fellow countrymen, we managed to find a few scenic corners and enjoyed a bit of refreshment amongst the serenity and peacefulness these Gardens offered. 
On the other hand, Zhou Zhang (周莊) was the gem that we had hoped for and the ancient village did not disappoint; its extremely beautiful waterways, bridges and non-intrusive stall owners really made this a must-see destination for everyone. Very different from the majestic and grandeur nature of Venice, Zhou Zhang typified the petite bridges, waterways and villagers (小橋、流水、人家) that made this part of China famous around the world. Every corner we turned, we were met with a soothing and pleasant new angle of this village. We were particularly impressed with the ancient village being "lived-in" by local villagers and commercialism was not as rampant as we had feared. The old part of the village was thankfully tucked away far from the bus station and no kidding, on our way in, we observed parking spaces enough for over 150 coaches; surely over the weekend this place would be crowded. Sit back and enjoy the photos of these Gardens and waterways.
One side note of interest, there was once a famously rich merchant called 沈萬三, during the early Ming Dynasty (元末明初), who lived in Zhou Zhang and the dish he prepared for the Emperor was even more famous - pig trot dipped in glassy soy sauce (萬三蹄) and this dish was sold all over this ancient village - tasty !!
The waterways and gardens in the province of Jiangsu (江蘇) had been known as the most serene, picturesque and inspiring in China for over a thousand years. Artists, scholars, musicians and avid travellers from all over, flog to this area of China to experience the finesse, subtlety and beauty of the famous gardens of 拙政園 and 獅子林 in the tidy city of Suzhou (蘇州); as well as the "most beautiful village built around canals in China" - Zhou Zhang (周莊). Firstly the famous gardens in Suzhou differed from those in Beijing in that the Suzhou gardens had always been owned and cared for by private owners (私家園林) and those in Beijing were known as "Royal Gardens" (皇家園林) which had been the back gardens and playgrounds for past Chinese emperors and royalties. We spent a good three to four hours in 拙政園 (known peculiarly as The Humble Administrator's Gardens...) and strolling along narrow alleyways and admiring the lotus, waterlilies and pines. Although as usual, the Gardens were swamped with fellow countrymen, we managed to find a few scenic corners and enjoyed a bit of refreshment amongst the serenity and peacefulness these Gardens offered. 
On the other hand, Zhou Zhang (周莊) was the gem that we had hoped for and the ancient village did not disappoint; its extremely beautiful waterways, bridges and non-intrusive stall owners really made this a must-see destination for everyone. Very different from the majestic and grandeur nature of Venice, Zhou Zhang typified the petite bridges, waterways and villagers (小橋、流水、人家) that made this part of China famous around the world. Every corner we turned, we were met with a soothing and pleasant new angle of this village. We were particularly impressed with the ancient village being "lived-in" by local villagers and commercialism was not as rampant as we had feared. The old part of the village was thankfully tucked away far from the bus station and no kidding, on our way in, we observed parking spaces enough for over 150 coaches; surely over the weekend this place would be crowded. Sit back and enjoy the photos of these Gardens and waterways.
One side note of interest, there was once a famously rich merchant called 沈萬三, during the early Ming Dynasty (元末明初), who lived in Zhou Zhang and the dish he prepared for the Emperor was even more famous - pig trot dipped in glassy soy sauce (萬三蹄) and this dish was sold all over this ancient village - tasty !!
