It may take you days or weeks to visit all scenic spots in Suzhou full of Chinese traditional cultures. You should choose some of them if your time, energy, or money is limited.

Covering 51,950 sq.m, the Humble Administrator's Garden is the largest of all classical gardens in Suzhou . It is centered upon the broad expanse of a lake, making up about one fifth of the total area. With well spaced buildings, the garden landscape and water scape are simple, extensive and natural, possessing the traditional appearances of the Ming Dynasty. It is divided into three parts; the eastern, middle and the western parts. The house lies in the south of the garden.

The Lingering Garden was listed from the first as cultural relics of national importance in 1961. With an area of 23,310 sq.m.it is celebrated for its artistic way of dealing with the spaces between various kinds of architectural form.Buildings make up one third of the total area of the garden,the hall of which being the most remarkable in Suzhou. The garden is separated into the middle ,eastern,northern and western parts. The ancestral temple and the house lie to the south of the garden.

The Master-of-Nets Garden covers 5,400 sq.m. and is divided into two parts: the eastern house and the western garden.Half enclosed by a screen wall with a row of iron rings for tethering horses,and two alleyway side entrances,the front door faces south,having a pair of var. Pendular in front ,and hairpin-like door ornaments above ,and two huge blocks of stone carved in the shape of drums kept fast with the hands,placed one by its left side and another by its right side.This type of front door showing owner's rank at the court has become very rare now.

Celebrated for its wonderful limestone mountain, Mountain Villa with Embracing Beauty ,covering only 2,180 sq.m.,enjoys the same reputation as other famous garden in China . According to the historical records,the limestone mountain was designed and piled up by the great Qing master Gu Yuliang ( 1764 A .D- -1830 A .D). Within an area of less than 500 sq.m.,the man-made mountain seems to be spontaneous an uncontrived ,possessing high peaks (about 7M ),dells,pathways, caverns,stone houses,stone steps,ravines,precipices,gullies,bridges and cliffs.Like a free hand brushwork in Chinese painting characterized by vivid expression and bold outline,it ranks first among all existing man-made mountains in Chinese gardens.

Compactly yet harmoniously spaced, the Lion Grove Garden has a prominent part for series of man-made mountains with various buildings around the lake , and an artificial waterfall and cliffs at the edge of the lake on the west. Remains of the 14th century man-made mountains,covering 1,152 sq.m. and being the largest of all at Suzhou,can be still seen today.Noted for its labyrinthine mountains with winding pathways and caverns,old pines and cypress trees, awesome peaks and jogged rocks of grotesque shapes resembling dancing lions with striking and unusral poses, it possesses with pride the true delights of mountain and forest scenery in limited space with a flavor of Zen Buddhism.

Celebrated for the delights of the wilderness of mountain and forest scenery, the Surging Wave Pavilion is the oldest among the existing classical gardens of Suzhou . The exact location of the Surging Wave Pavilion can be found in the Song Dynasty map of Pingjiang (Suzhou,A.D.1229) inscribed on the stele.The northern Song poet Su Sunqin said in "A Record of the Surging Wave Pavilion","...To the east of the Confucian Temple were earthen hills covered with trees and grass,and a wide expanse of water,quite different from the urban scenes... I was reluctant to leave because I fell in love with this place.So I bought it for 20,000 coins,built a pavilion on the rock projecting over the water on the north and called it the Surging Wave Pavilion." 

Surrounded by the canal from three sides, the Couple's Garden Retreat has piers close to the front and back entrances. The housing complex,located in the middle and flanked by the East and West Garden, consists of four buildings in succession and is joined with the gardens by muti-storied buildings.

The pond in the middle of the garden of cultivation occupies one fourth of the total area. It features "mountain scenery" to the south of the pond and buildings to the north.The pond has a roughly rectangular shape with coves at the southeast and southwest corners,which are spanned by low,flat and small bridges. On the east and west banks of the pond are roofed and open-sided galleries,pavilions,rocks and trees, serving transitionarily as a foil to the northern and southern scenes.

The Garden of Retreat and Reflection is composed of the housing complex,garden courts and a garden which are aligned on a west-east axis.

Lying 40 kilometers to the southwest of Suzhou, the East Hill is a peninsular extending into Taihu Lake. Bus No. 20 goes directly there. The peninsular is surrounded by water on three sides. The vast expanse of water, reflecting the sail and the gulls together with the 72 peaks including West Hill, Guangfu Hill, Dengwei Hill, etc, forms the picturesque Taihu Lake Scenic Area. In an area of about 70 square kilometers, there are 23 undulating peaks and 31 ravines. Anyone who go boating on the lakes among the dense forest and steep slopes would linger around in great pleasure.

The West Hill Scenic Spot lies in the southern centre of Taihu Lake and the buses from Wuxian city Bus Station or Southern Gate Bus Station go directly there. Facing the East Hill Scenic Area, the West Hill is composed of Dongting west hill, the largest island in Taihu Lake and the other islands around. The scenery here embraces the essence of the hills and Taihu Lake featured by the unique archipelago scenes and the historic sites formed since the period of Wu&Yue.

The Flat-top Hill is one of the main scenes of the Mudu Scenic Spot of National Taihu Lake Scenic and Historic Spot. It is 14 kilometers west to Suzhou city with an elevation of 221 meters. Although it is high and steep, it is flat at the top, from which its name is got.

Lying 20 kilometers west to Suzhou city, the Heavenly Pond Hill is the “Number One Historical Site in Wu Area”. It is in parallel with the Tiger Hill, the Flat-top Hill and the Delicate Rock Hill, which are praised as the “Four Famous Hills” in Wu area.

The Commander-in-chief Deng's Hill is located in the Guangfu Town of Wu County sixty miles southwest to Suzhou city ,it can be accessed by taking Suzhou-Guangfu Bus at the Southern Gate Bus Station of Suzhou and the Bus Station of Wu County. It is said that Duke Deng Yu once lived in seclusion here during the reign of the Emperor Guangwu of the Eastern Han Dynasty, and as the highest official position Deng Yu took was the Commander-in-chief, the hill was called the Commander-in-chief Deng's Hill. Being a secluded place and linked with the hills of Xunmu, Tanshan, Qingzhi, Xiqi, Tongjin and Majia nearby, the Commander-in-chief Deng's Hill is a peninsula slantingly inserted into the Taihu Lake . A gorgeous picture is interwoven here by the rolling green hills and the Taihu Lake surrounding in the west.

The Delicate Rock Hill lies at the side of Mudu Town 30 kilometers southwest to Suzhou city and can be accessed by taking No. 16 Bus and getting down at the foot of the hill. It is 180 meters high and covers 1,800 mu (= 0.0667 hectares). It was said that the Delicate Rock Hill was tall, straight, beautiful and queer, and it looked unwilling to be paralleled with the other hills. Therefore, it has been praised as “the most beautiful and superb hill in south of the Yangtse River ”, “more queer and superb than Tiantai Hill” and the “Number one Peak in Wu Area”. It has main scenes like the Well of the King of Wu, the Moon-enjoying Pond, the Flower-flowing Pond, the Hole of Xishi (the beauty of the State of Yue ) and the Terrace for Qin (a seven-stringed plucked instrument in some ways similar to the zither).

The Twin Pagodas are the two pagodas most characteristic of Suzhou . They are artistic and natural as they are close at hand. These two precious pagodas lie in the Dinghui Temple Lane in the southeastern corner of the city proper of Suzhou and can be accessed by taking No. 2 and No. 4 Buses. One of them is called Clarity Dispensing Pagoda and the other Beneficence Pagoda and they are in the same form of building. Both the twin Pagodas are wooden building structure in appearance. They are octagonal in plan and have seven storeys, each with doors in four sides and straight lattices in other sides.

Hanshan Temple Scenic Spot of Suzhou is a provincial scenic spot of Jiangsu , which lies on the side of the ancient canal 3.5 kilometers west to Suzhou and covers 45 hectares. With many places of interest and four provincial preservation units of historical and cultural relics in the scenic spot, the humanistic scenes are plentiful and the natural sights are beautiful.

The Mysterious Taoist Temple lies on the Guanqian Street at the center of Suzhou and is convenient to be accessed by taking No. 1, No. 3 and No. 5 Buses. The building of the Mysterious Taoist Temple began in the second year of the reign of Hanning in the West Jin Dynasty and is the monastery resort of the Taoist faction of Zhengyi. It was originally called the Zhengqing Taoist Monastery and was renamed the Mysterious Taoist Temple in the Yuan Dynasty. In order to avoiding using the King's name during the reign of Kangxi in the Qing Dynasty, the name was changed into the Xuanmiao Taoist Temple . In the early era of the Republic of China, the name of the Mysterious Taoist Temple was reused. 

Embraced by Cheng Lake, Dian Lake, Yuan Dang Lake,Chang Bai Lake, Bai Xian Lake and the South Lake , the township lies in the southeast corner of Kun Shan city. Surrounded by water, Zhou Zhuang itself also abounds in interlaced rivers and lakes. The whole traffic was once mainly by means of boats. With a history of more than 900 years, Zhou Zhuang has been known as “township and the island”, characterized by the picturesque water county scenery--- a perfect combination of exquisite bridges, limpid reverlets and quaint houses.

Being an ancient township, Tong Li borders on Tongli Lake on the east, Nanxin Lake on the south, adjoins Pangshan Lake on the west, Jiuli Lake on the north and Wusong Jiang River on the northwest. The town proper is divided by the streams into 7 islets interlaced with the surrounding water area, forming typical water county of the south.

Situated in Wuxian city to the east of Suzhou, Luzhi is also named "Fuli", a typical ancient town in the water country of the southern Yangtze Delta, where the scenery is dominated by "numerous bridges and houses over canals".Bao Shen Temple in the town is a well-known Buddhist sanctuary in the region and a national monument,in which are preserved the tomb of the effects of Lu Guimeng, poet of late Tang Dynasty, the Pavilion of Refreshing Breeze, the Pavilion of Fighting Ducks, and the tomb of Ye Shentao, educationist of modern China.

Mudu Township 10km west to suzhou is a famous historical and cultural town of Jiangsu Province . "Mudu", meaning "timbers blocking the rivers", comes from a story: During the Spring and Autumn Period,King Wu was building " Guanwa Palace " for his concubine Xishi. The timbers rafted here were so many that they blocked the rivers. With many Ming and Qing period gardens, Mudu is called "town of Gardens".

 

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