Xiangshan is not far from the North Palace Gate of the Summer Palace. As an imperial palace and royal garden, the Summer Palace, located in the western suburbs, can be considered a paragon of Chinese royal gardens in terms of architectural scale and landscape layout. Originally built during the Kangxi-Qianlong盛世 period, it was then called "Qingyi Garden" before being destroyed by the Anglo-French Allied Forces during the Xianfeng era.
Later, Empress Dowager Cixi invested heavily in its reconstruction, renaming it "Summer Palace" with the meaning of "nourishing great harmony". The ingenious layout of Wanshou Mountain within the park almost encompasses all forms of ancient Chinese architecture and gardens! Here, one can also feel the extreme luxury of the life of Empress Dowager Cixi.
Upon entering the North Palace Gate and walking across the stone bridge leading to the back of Wanshou Mountain, you can look down at Suzhou Street along the Suzhou River, which used to be where the court held temple fairs. You can take a small boat here to reach Kunming Lake on the south side of Wanshou Mountain via the Back Lake.
First, ascend to the back of Wanshou Mountain, where there is a cluster of religious buildings that blend Han and Tibetan cultures. The electronic tour guide explains that this area is called "The Four Great Continents," referring to the four great continents and eight smaller ones in the Buddhist world.
The four-colored stupas and solemnly shaped Buddha platforms are distributed in accordance with the mountain's undulating terrain, offering completely different views from each position...
Continuing up and around Xiangyan Zongyin Pavilion, the grand building in front of you is the core structure of the back mountain architecture - Wisdom Sea. The walls are neatly carved with niches and Buddha statues; most of the lower statues were damaged by the Eight-Nation Alliance and are now mostly incomplete.
To the south of Wisdom Sea lies Zhongxiangjie and the highest building on Wanshou Mountain - the Fragrance of Buddha Pavilion, built to celebrate Empress Dowager Cixi's birthday. I'm unsure if there's a direct path to the Fragrance of Buddha Pavilion, but I think it's better to first descend to visit the Stone Boat and Long Corridor, and then ascend from the lakeside Paiyun Gate to the majestic Fragrance of Buddha Pavilion for a better view.
Descending from the back mountain to the front mountain, you can see the shimmering waters of Kunming Lake in the distance, vast and magnificent. Palaces and pavilions are built layer upon layer following the mountain's slope. Often in sight are the glazed tile roofs of adjacent buildings. The winding roads lead through scenic spots like an ever-unfolding scroll. Along the way down, inside a palace, I became an "Emperor" for a moment: I took two photos dressed in a dragon robe, costing 50 yuan, but it was worth it!
Descending further brings you to the long corridor by the shore of Kunming Lake. This long corridor is truly remarkable: extending about seven hundred meters from east to west; if every four pillars count as one room, there are a total of 273 rooms. Despite the varying terrain, the base of the corridor remains level due to the clever placement of four pavilions at the high-low transition points, named "Liu Jia, Ji Lan, Qiu Shui, Qing Yao," representing the four seasons.
The long corridor of the Summer Palace is a world-class artistic treasure, especially notable for its nearly fourteen thousand Suzhou-style painted beams inside the corridor, none of which are repeated. The content of the paintings includes landscapes, flowers and birds, insects and fish, folk legends, poems and lyrics, classical masterpieces, and more, all rich and diverse. The delicate brushwork is truly exquisite!
Can you identify the content of the following beam painting? It depicts Yue Fei spearing Prince Xiaoliang from the novel "Complete Biography of Yue Fei"...
Further west along the long corridor, you'll find the Stone Boat. Decorated with colorful tiles and presenting a Western style, the Stone Boat, also known as Qingyan Boat, was where Empress Dowager Cixi enjoyed the moon and lotus flowers.
It's said that Empress Dowager Cixi misappropriated naval funds to extensively renovate the Summer Palace while practicing naval drills on Kunming Lake, constructing this stone-sculpted warship as a disguise, later converting it into a Stone Boat. Another theory claims that the Stone Boat was originally the release platform of Yuanjing Temple during the Ming Dynasty. Which is true remains unknown.
Near the Stone Boat, there's a bridge called Xing Bridge, marking the western starting point of the Back Lake. On both sides, there are archways with exquisite craftsmanship exuding imperial grandeur.
Strangely, why are there stone lions placed outside the bridge railing? This seems illogical. While I was puzzled, the electronic tour guide narrated a story: it's said that Empress Dowager Cixi was often disturbed by water snakes while enjoying the moon here, angering her enough to punish her attendants. With no solution in sight, someone suggested that snakes fear lions. Since the bridge was already built, they could only place four stone lions on the outside of the bridge railing...
Next, continue east along the long corridor to visit the must-see Fragrance of Buddha Pavilion when coming to the Summer Palace, as well as the grand palace complex near the East Palace Gate.
To be continued... More pictures are stored in the space album...