The rockery
A mountain in miniature.
Ammar7may — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Lamassu Design Gurdjieff (talk) — CC BY-SA 3.0 · G41rn8 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · G41rn8 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Lamassu Design Gurdjieff (talk) — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Can Zhao — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Can Zhao — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Can Zhao — CC BY-SA 3.0
A tiny garden on Jingde Road almost filled by a single rockery, the work of Ge Yuliang, one of the great garden builders of the Qing, and held to be the finest limestone rockery in all of Suzhou's gardens, «unrivalled in Jiangnan», as the Chinese say. The site held a garden from the 10th century, then a temple, then the home of a Ming grand secretary; it took its present name in 1847 and has been part of the Classical Gardens of Suzhou World Heritage Site since 1997. Inside the rockery a path of more than 60 m winds through caves, narrow passes and ravines, with water running between its two peaks, so that it feels like a real mountain in a small space. Tickets are about CNY 15, and it is open from 8.30 am to 4.30 pm, per visitor guides. Half an hour to an hour is enough.
A mountain in miniature.
And a winding path.
Between two peaks.
272 Jingde Road, Gusu District, Suzhou
Garden of Cultivation (Yipu)A small Ming-dynasty garden in narrow Wenya Lane in Gusu, one of the best preser6 minutes walk
Lion Grove GardenA famous classical garden in old Suzhou, built in 1342 under the Yuan by a Buddh24 minutes walk4.4
Suzhou MuseumOne of the world's most visited museums, with more than two million visitors in 24 minutes walk4.3
Pingjiang RoadOld Suzhou's loveliest street, running about 1,606 m along the Pingjiang canal t25 minutes walk4.4Yes for lovers of garden art, as its rockery is counted the finest of its kind in Suzhou, but it is very small and closes early, at 4.30 pm, per visitor guides.