Yu Garden is a famous classical garden located in Anren street, Shanghai. The garden was finished in 1577 by a government officer of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) named Pan Yunduan. "Yu" in Chinese means pleasing and satisfying, and this garden was specially built for Pan's parents as a place for them to enjoy a tranquil and happy time in their old age and it spends almost all of Pan’s savings. Over the years, the gardens fell into disrepair until it was bought by merchants in 1760 and they spent more than 20 years for reconstructing the buildings. During the Opium War of the 19th century, Yuyuan Garden was severely damaged again. The Yuyuan Garden you see today is the result of a five year restoration project which began in 1956. The garden was open to the public in September, 1961.
Yuyuan Garden occupies an area of 20,000 square meters. With the small size of the garden. The pavilions, halls, rockeries, ponds and cloisters all have unique characteristics. There are six main scenic areas in the garden: Sansui Hall, Wanhua Chamber, Dianchun Hall, etc. Each area features several scenic spots within its borders. For example:
Main Buildings in Yu Garden
Sansui Hall: It is a place to hold ceremonies for the gentlemen and bookmen. With a height of nine meters (about 30 feet) and featuring five halls, it is the largest and the most spacious structure in the garden. The name Sansui is derived from the book History of the later Han Dynasty, and means 'propitious' and 'lucky'.
Wanhua Chamber: Wanhua Chamber is a delicately building surrounded by derious cloisters. There are some spring bamboos beside the cloisters. In front of Wanhua Chamber, there are two old trees. One is a maidenhair tree which is 21 meters tall (about 70 feet).It is said that the tree was planted in the garden 400 years ago.
Dianchun Hall: Dianchun Hall area is located east of Wanhua Chamber, this construction includes Hexu Hall, Relic Hall, Ancient Well Pavilion, and the Acting-and-Sing Stage.
There are some other attracting things in the Yu Garden. Such as the the Exquisite Jade Rock in Yuyuan Garden . What is interesting about this rock is that if one burn a joss stick just below the rock, the smoke will magically float out from all of the holes. Similarly, when one pour water into the rock from top, the water will flow out from each hole.