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Suzhou Lion Grove Garden

It was the best rock garden; it was the best donation

Right near the Humble Administrator's Garden is the Lion Grove Garden. It was built in 1342 by monks in honor of an abbot or master. In Chinese lion is a homonym to the word meaning teacher. Sylvester "Rocky" Stallone would have felt right at home here because of all the rock formation. :-) Theresa and I had a fun time climbing through this intricate labyrinth of rock formation. Fortunately we did not hit our head by the jagged rocks. The famed emperor Qianlong from the Qing dynasty frequently visited here in the summer. The Lion Grove Garden was not the biggest nor most beautiful gardens in Suzhou; however, Emperor Qianlong found the place to be most fascinating. In the early 20th century Lion Grove Garden belong to the grandfather of I.M Pei, the famous architect for such places as Pyramide du Louvre in Paris.  After the founding of the People's Republic of China, this Garden was donated to the government.