Suzhou: Canglang Pavillion (Blue Wave Pavillion)

It is my first time planing my Shanghai Xian tour. Time as I have so I want to visit more places near Shanghai. I am lured to the famous Canglang Pavillion in Suzhou. Located in the southern part of Suzhou, China’s eastern Jiangsu Province, Canglang Pavillion is one of the four most famous gardens of the city. And the other three are the Lion Grove, the Humble Administrator’s Garden(Zhuozheng Garden) and the Lingering Garden(Liuyuan Garden). Originally built in Northern Song Dynasty(906-1127), Canglang Pavillion is the oldest among Suzhou gardens. When I first saw the pavilion, it reminded me the Big Wild Goose Pagoda I saw in Xian travel.

In Song Dynasty, a famous poet Su Shunqin was exiled to Suzhou. He bought the desolate garden and began to build the pavilion in a setting adjacent to water. In early Southern Song Dynasty(early 12 century), the garden became the residence of the famous anti-Jin general Han Shizhong. And later in the 35th year of Kangxi Reign(1696 AD) in Qing Dynasty, the pavilion was rebuilt on the top of the mount, there forming the basic structure of today’s Canglang Pavilion. In the 12th year of Tongzhi Reign(1873AD) of Qing Dynast, it was rebuilt again and brought to today’s distribution.

The garden harmoniously combine historical buildings and natural landscapes together. After several changes, the buildings of Song Dynasty have rebuilt, so the present architectures are simply and classically designed as Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) style.

Now, Canglang Pavilion has been admitted to the World Cultural Heritage List by UNESCO. In May 25, 2006, it was listed in the sixth group of State-level National Key Cultural Relic Protection Unit by the State Council.