Canglang Pavilion in Suzhou | Unwilling to compete with the bright winter snow, it bestows its unique beauty and lingering fragrance to solitude

Jade plum trees quietly bloom, with endless subtle fragrance rolling in. Auspicious snow flutters and dances in the southern garden, as a pot of aged wine intoxicates the terrace. Photos were taken in early January at Canglang Pavilion, a very niche garden in Suzhou, where the wintersweet flowers bloom, filling the garden with a floating, hidden fragrance, anticipating the arrival of spring. - 📍Canglang Pavilion (7:00-17:30) 🎫Peak season 20 yuan/person, off-season 15 yuan/person, garden pass accepted. - Canglang Pavilion is the oldest garden in Suzhou, originally built during the Qingli era of the Northern Song Dynasty (1041-1048 AD), and in the early Southern Song Dynasty (early 12th century AD), it was the residence of the famous general Han Shizhong. The garden art of Canglang Pavilion is unique; before entering the garden, a pool of green water is set to encircle the outside. The main scenery inside the garden is rocky mountains, with a soil mountain facing the entrance, on which the Canglang Stone Pavilion is situated. Below the mountain, a water pond is excavated, and a winding covered corridor connects the mountains and waters. The Mingdao Hall in the southeast part of the rockery is the main building of the garden, which is complemented by other structures such as the Five Hundred Sages Shrine, Kanshan Tower, Cuilinglong Pavilion, Yangzhi Pavilion, and the Imperial Stele Pavilion. Canglang Pavilion, along with Lion Grove Garden, Humble Administrator's Garden, and Lingering Garden, is listed as one of the four great gardens of the Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties in Suzhou. In addition to the Canglang Pavilion itself, there are other buildings and landscapes such as the Yinxin Stone House, Mingdao Hall, and Kanshan Tower.