Suzhou, the cradle of Wu Culture, is a city with a history of more than 2,500 years, tracing back to the later Shang Dynasty of the earlier Chinese history. When talking about Suzhou, the old saying mentions it as a "Paradise on the Earth" or the "East Venice of the World", referring to its natural beauty, classical gardens, bridges and waters, traditional operas and soft dialect tone.

Suzhou classical garden makes the city an international reputation. Chinese gardens can be classified into two categories, private garden and royal garden. Suzhou's gardens are associated with the latter. These gardens originated from the desire to retire from the strife of officialdom and to shun from worldly affairs. There were once over 200 gardens in the city and 60 of them are still in the nice preservation today. Total nine of these gardens have been listed in the World Heritage Sites

The famous gardens are few in number, but garden architecture has a solid popular foundation in Suzhou and you can find gardens large and small in the homes of ordinary folk perhaps just a rockery or a tall and slender bamboo. The famous gardens grew out of Suzhou's cultural atmosphere and everyday customs; they are not transplanted products, the results of a pretended love of art.

The classical gardens of Suzhou are places where the heart finds ease. They are perfect combination of ancient Chinese thought and life experience, of technique and economic strength. The saying "Up in Heaven there is paradise; down here on earth we have Suzhou and Hangzhou" is not just words; it actually depicts the life ideal of ancient China.

Like the temples of ancient Greece, the classical gardens of Suzhou are sacred shrines, and are the superb embodiment of Chinese thought. The greatness of Chinese thought lies in the unity of knowledge and action rather than in the abstract doctrinarism of pure metaphysics. It is a practical living world embodied in concrete situations. The gardens are among the highest manifestations of the philosophy of the oneness of man and nature. Conveying the most profound dimension of Chinese philosophy, they are good places for cultivating the mind and developing the character. At the same time, the are ideal places for easing the heart and living a peaceful life. Cultivating the mind and easing the heart is what essentially distinguishes Chinese from Western architecture.

Suzhou is a historical city in China. Some people call here the "East Venice" because of the rivers, the bridges and the condition of the people who live here. Suzhou Garden is the symbol of the buildings in Jianghan. It's famous for its lakes, hills and the gardens. The traditional specialties are jasmine tea, Su-taste cakes, sandal fans, Song brocade, lacquer ware, embroidery and drawn work.