chapter 10 continued
suzhou for tourists:
master of the nets garden
photo copyright © Robert Charlick, 1999
On overcast, cool weekdays, The Master of the Nets garden was a great place to take a stack of student essays, sit in one of the ancient pavilions with an endless cup of green tea, and grade papers. (Warm days and weekends were NOT great as the place became overrun by tourists-foreign and local!).
It's a small garden, by Suzhou standards. Situated in the tightly packed Suzhou University area, if you can find it (and that isn't so easy if you are merely a wandering tourist), its tight walls ensconced down among meandering hutongs off Shi Quan Jie, enclose an idyllic space which blocks out the taxi horns, vendor cries and the blare of 21st century life in
China.
The recently released Willem Dafoe movie "A Pavilion of Women" (based on the Pearl Buck book of the same title) was shot in this garden during the Summer of '99. The movie was released May 1, 2001. The Master of the Nets looks even better on film than it does here. Check it out at a theatre or Blockbuster near you.
Chapter Ten - SuzhouTour: master of the nets
blue wave pavilion
canals
bridges
zhou zhuang More Suzhou Pictures at the Photo Gallery | 
