Courtesy of CNTO
Take a stroll through Yu Yuan Garden and the bazaar.
Hours:
Daily 8:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m.
Price:
Approximately $6
Type:
Neighborhoods & Districts
If you want to feel as if you’re walking in the footsteps of China’s ancient beings, stroll through the Yu Yuan Garden and Bazaar where you can wander around for hours imagining how the citizens of this great city lived in the 16th century when the complex was built. The history of the Yu Yuan Garden can be dated back to 1559 when it was built as a private garden. Pan Yunduan spent almost 20 years building the garden for his father Pan En, who was an official in the Ming Dynasty. The gardens were neglected before being bought by merchants in 1760; then they were badly damaged during the Opium Wars of the 19th century and again by the Japanese in 1942. Between 1956 and 1961, they were repaired by the Shanghai government and opened to the public, and since 1982 the beautiful complex has been declared a national monument.
The garden is laid out in six areas in the traditional Suzhou style, each one separated by dragon walls. There are shops on the grounds and a tea café called Huxinting, which is in the center of the lake that is reached by a zigzagging Chinese bridge. Plan to stay in the neighborhood for dim sum, as several well-known restaurants (Lu Bo Land and Nanxiang Bun Shop), as well as the City God Temple are in the vicinity.