Nanyuan Teahouse

 

 

Nanyuan Teahouse (南园茶社) was built in late Qing Dynasty and located in downtown Tongli, south of Suzhou city, it has also been called "The First Teahouse in Jiangnan (the south of the lower reaches of Yangtze River)".

Nanyuan Teahouse is like a pavilion floating on the water. It looks the two banks of the Tongli town river, where boats are passing slowly and quietly. You can also hear the street vendors walking and shouting to sell their fishes, shrimps and vegetables, see the old locust trees, magpie birds flying, and village girls whose hairs with embroidery make-ups washing clothes along the river.

If you visit Nanyuan Teahouse in the morning, the business will be so busy, because local people, especially the senior citizens, like eating breakfast, drinking tea, chatting with friends and listening to the most updated market news. Today local fishermen are still keeping their habits that they like to have a brief rest, wash their faces and have meals in Nanyuan Teahouse, which is sometime nicknamed "Fishermen's Pier".