Day 17 The Master of the Nets garden

As we learned before, things in China aren't always what their name implies. Suzhou is famous for it's gardens, and this is one of many. However, it was actually a house, with a garden in the center, like a courtyard. The garden was beautiful, and as always, included a small pond in the center. There are always porches and patios in the courtyard for the occupants to enjoy the serene beauty.

Another surprise about this garden is the name. Master of the Nets seems to refer to fisherman, but actually this garden was used by some of the best scholars in China waiting to be called into the court of the Emperor. The Master of the Nets was the top scholar. When they were called by the Emperor, they left their home immediately to go serve him.