Marco
Polo made the city famous in Europe by his writings of the Silk Road,
and its origin in Suzhou. It is famous for its beautiful gardens that
have been admired and copied all over the world. A popular saying in the
Song Dynasty goes," Paradise in Heaven --Suzhou and Hangzhou on Earth".
There are over sixty gardens in Suzhou today, with nine listed in the
National Archives and internationally renowned and protected as a World’s
Cultural Heritage site by the United Nations. These classical garden designs
and techniques were introduced to Japan and Europe in ancient times.
Suzhou
rests on the shore of the third largest fresh water lake in China. At
Lake Taihu, limestone rocks eroded by lake water for eons, provide the
natural source for those beautifully formed rocks decorating so many gardens
in China. In the hills around Lake Taihu, the famous Biluochun Tea is
grown. Incidentally, the tangerines here are unsurpassed for taste and
texture.
While
in Suzhou you must see the silk embroidery that has been made famous by
generations of skilled workers. This art form of embroidering silk threads
through a fine silk screen is centuries old. The very best artists of
silk embroidery can create images that are three-dimensional and virtually
jump out at you.
Most
artists are farm girls that normally do this work in the off-season. Genetically
they have excellent eyesight, keen, clear instincts with insurmountable
patience. It takes one to three months to complete an embroidery, depending
upon the complexity. Today there is such demand for their work that many
devote full time to their passion of embroidery.
The
quality and class of embroidery is much like art. There are some artists
that are technically proficient and there are a few that are brilliant.Most
of the pieces you will see are created by lower rated individuals at the
beginning or intermediate stages of development.