Souzhou - Garden City
Founded in 514 BC as a capital of Wu Kingdom, Souzhou is home to the most exquisite Classic Chinese Gardens. Unlike Imperial gardens of Hangzhou, Souzhou gardens are laid out within a limited area by the house. A classical garden of Suzhou is a microcosm of the world made of the basic elements of water, stones, plants and different kinds of buildings with literary allusions.
This album contains photos of three Souzhou gardens: The Humble Administrator's Garden, Lion Forest Garden and The Lingering Garden. Suzhou is now a quiet small (by Chinese standards) city of 600,0000 and the gardens are UNESCO protected World Heritage Site