Garden Hotel

One of the most stunning examples of classical southern Chinese garden design is the Garden of the Master of Nets, the old garden of a Qing dynasty courtier Song Zongyuan. He bought a house and garden originally built in 1180 in the Southern Song Dynasty by an earlier courtier, Shi Zhengzhi.
Covering just 1.5 hectares, this is an absolute masterpiece of design, integrating the living quarters neatly with the open landscapes.
The eastern half is laid out in traditional style around three halls - the Sedan Hall (with its absurdly high, prestigious raised threshold) complete with traditional sedan. A nice touch is the carved brick tablets of the old family from the Song Dynasty, a rare sight these days. The brick gateway beyond doubled up as a fire-door, and the panels are inlaid with bricks: fire was an ever-present threat in crowded old towns mde mainly of wood! Look for the carvings of lions, bats and peony flowers around this gateway.
The main recetion hall behind was known as the Ten Thousand Volumes Hall, with its unusual bronze drums (more cmmon in south-western China than here in the centre).
Separate reception halls with bedrooms upstairs provided a more private area for th women of the family. Small - tiny - courtyards, each planted very carefully with trees to provide a specific foliage effect or scent, separate the small pavilions.