One museum, one temple, one mountain, one gate, one town, one garden

Going to Suzhou, just visiting these six 'ones' is enough. One museum, one temple, one mountain, one gate, one town, one garden. One museum, the main building of the Suzhou Museum, requires advance reservation. The entire building was designed by the famous architect I.M. Pei. Being there, you can feel the grandeur within the delicate style of Suzhou gardens. The museum has a rich collection of artifacts, making it a great place to deeply appreciate and understand Jiangnan. It's a good choice for learning about this region. One temple, Suzhou's famous temples include Hanshan Temple, Xiyuan Temple, and Chongyuan Temple. Hanshan Temple is recommended because it is closer and more well-known. The temple is very exquisite, not large, and not crowded. During the fall, the entire temple is filled with various light and shadow effects. You can see light streaming through various gaps into the courtyard, corridors, under windows, and beneath trees. If you're lucky, you might hear the sound of the bell, making the whole world seem to stand still. Perhaps this is the essence of Zen . One mountain, Tiger Hill is called a mountain but its altitude is less than 300 meters, so it's more of a hill . It's easy to reach the top and get close to the world's second most leaning tower. If you get tired, you can buy tower-shaped ice cream at the top for 25 yuan each . This is the highest point near the capital of Wu and Yue. Many famous people have visited here, either to compose poems or to paint. Walking here feels like stepping into a time machine, traveling through 3000 years of history, feeling the changes of the earth and the passage of time, and marveling at the beauty and profoundness of Chinese culture. One gate, Gusu City has eight city gates: Changmen, Xumen, Panmen, Shemen, Loumen, Xiangmen, Pingmen, and Qimen. Xiangmen is recommended as it has just been fully renovated. It's not crowded, allowing you to avoid commercial vibes. Climbing the steps to the city wall, you can explore the grandeur of Gusu City and its past prosperity. The scenes of battles seem to come alive. If you get tired, there is a small cultural district across the moat under the city wall, with coffee, food, and crafts, pulling you back from ancient times to the modern world. One town, Suzhou has many famous ancient towns, such as Mudu Ancient Town, Luzhi Ancient Town, Nanxun Ancient Town, Tongli Ancient Town, Zhouzhuang, as well as Shantang Street and Pingjiang Street. There are also many lesser-known ancient towns . Zhouzhuang is a lifestyle in itself, featuring almost all the unique elements of Jiangnan ancient towns: small bridges, flowing water, white walls, and black tiles. The waterways are densely interconnected, making it very convenient for logistics. Back in the day, Shen Wansan relied on this to load goods onto boats right outside his door and set sail, achieving wealth multiple times and eventually becoming the God of Wealth . One garden, naturally, is the Humble Administrator's Garden. According to historical records, it was first built during the Three Kingdoms period and underwent continuous renovations through the Eastern Jin, Tang, Northern Song, and Yuan dynasties. It wasn't until the Ming dynasty that the imperial censor Wang Xianchen completed the final construction, giving it the name 'Humble Administrator's Garden.' Unfortunately, his son lost it in a gambling game . After several changes of ownership, it has remained largely unchanged. Today, it is still a 50,000-square-meter luxurious garden, a must-visit for those studying fine arts, architecture, and painting. Suzhou has a long history and many historical sites worth visiting, such as the modern and technologically advanced Jinji Lake, the former residence of Zhou Yu and Xiao Qiao, now the City God Temple, and the highly regarded Taoist temple in the Jiangsu and Zhejiang regions, Guanqian Street's Guan Temple. Take your time to walk and look carefully. Life is full of romance everywhere. Looking forward to your beautiful journey, beautiful scenery, and beautiful life.