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Suzhou, China
Suzhou has been celebrated in Chinese culture for millennia as a city of beauty, refinement, and scholarship. Its classical gardens — the Humble Administrator's Garden, Lingering Garden, and Master of the Nets Garden — are UNESCO World Heritage Sites that represent the pinnacle of Chinese garden design, with carefully composed scenes of rocks, water, pavilions, and plantings meant to evoke natural landscapes in miniature. The old town's canal streets, particularly Pingjiang Road and Shantang Street, preserve the whitewashed houses and stone bridges of traditional Jiangnan watertown architecture. Suzhou's silk heritage spans 5,000 years, with the Suzhou Silk Museum and working workshops along the old streets. The Suzhou Museum, designed by I.M. Pei (who traced his ancestry to the city), is a masterful blend of traditional Chinese and modern architecture. Kunqu opera, one of the oldest forms of Chinese theater, was born in Suzhou and can still be experienced in intimate garden settings.
explore by interest
Visit the major gardens when they open to avoid crowds, and save the canal walks for late afternoon when the light on the white walls and water is most photogenic.
March through May for spring flowers in the gardens, or September through November for comfortable temperatures and autumn colors.