★ Tourist location: Xiangxuehai, Suzhou

I went to Xiangxuehai once when I was young, and was shocked by the plum blossoms all over the slopes. Later, after looking at the Meilin Plum Sea in Wuxi Plum Garden, Linwu Plum Sea, Nanjing Meihua Mountain and other places, I seemed to think that the plum trees in Xiangxuehai were actually not very large. But the original clouds are still rippling in my mind. So, one day in February, we still set off for Xiangxuehai.

When the car arrived at the corner, I saw a parking lot, marked as the free parking lot in Xiangxue Sea Scenic Area. There were many empty parking spaces, and I was immediately overjoyed. I am most afraid of parking when I am away from home, especially when visiting these tourist attractions. The security guard asked us whether we were going to Xiangxuehai to see plum blossoms and shook his head with a smile: "You'd better drive the car there, otherwise you'll have to walk five miles!"

"So far?" I was shocked. The security guard explained that during the peak season for plum viewing, Xiang Xuemei's car couldn't park, but there was no need today. There was still a parking space there.

We thanked the uncle, and sure enough, we only saw the gate of Xiangxuehai after driving for two or three kilometers. Maybe the weather is not very good today, or maybe it rained two days ago, and a lot of plum blossoms should have fallen, so although there are quite a few tourists, they are not as many as expected, and there are still parking spaces.

Walking into the gate, you will see a Plum Creek. This stream is not too long or too wide. The gate is not walled, so you can see the plum blossoms of Xiangxue Sea across the stream. It seems that they are really failing. The rain in Jiangnan is too dense, and the plum blossoms are dying a little early.

In the thirty-fifth year of Kangxi, Governor Song Luo was very active and wrote the three characters "Xiangxue Sea" on the cliff of Deng Wei. From then on, Xiangxue Sea became famous all over the world. Xiangxuehai, Hangzhou Chaoshan, Nanjing Meihua Mountain, and Wuxi Plum Garden are also known as the four major plum exploration resorts in the country, but this is the most famous. One is that plum blossoms have a relatively early history, the second is that plum blossoms have been planted on a relatively large scale, and the third is that there are many varieties of plum blossoms.

Not far from the entrance, there is an embossed wall. This wall should have been built later. The entire embossed is of course mainly plum blossoms. Someone in the pavilion stroked their beards and admired plum blossoms, with a calm attitude.

To the right is the bonsai garden, with all kinds of rhododendrons. Logically speaking, this season is not the flowering season for rhododendrons. It must have been cultivated in a greenhouse and moved out in time to enjoy the plum blossom season. Tulips are planted in the flower bed in the middle. Although the number is small and the scale is not large, it also adds a lot of color to this spring.

On the left is a large area of Merlin, and there is an open space in the middle with activity supplies. The activity theme of "Reunion with Plum Scenery on a Good Day" sounds very good. However, it is said that the event will not start until tomorrow and is just for decoration now.

The scale of the Xiangxuehai Scenic Area itself is not large, but the planting area of plum blossoms is estimated to account for more than half of the entire scenic area, so it is full of pink. Although there are also white plums, the mixing in them seems to only serve as a color adjustment.

We climbed the mountain along the stone steps, and there was Wenmei Pavilion halfway down the slope. This museum was built during the Kangxi period of the Qing Dynasty and was later destroyed in war. It was later built by Chen Zemin, governor of Jiangsu during the Wang Puppet period, and restored its original appearance. This is a great place to admire plum blossoms in Xiangxuehai, and it is also a place where literati and literati of the past dynasties recited poems and poems.

Standing on the platform in front of the museum, looking out from this angle, because you stand high, you can see far away. Layer upon layer of plum blossoms are spreading out in front of your eyes like a cloud brocade.

The Plum Blossom Pavilion next to it is quite interesting. The top of the pavilion has been built in the shape of a plum blossom petal. The tile roof, column railing, wall window and tile floor are all in the shape of plum blossom petals, just like a big plum blossom. The roof of the pavilion is tied with copper cranes, which means "plum wife and crane son". The original pavilion was destroyed by soldiers, but now this pavilion was built in 1923 by Yao Chengzu, the architect of the Xiangshan Gang.

On the slope is the Imperial Monument of Qianlong, which is "Re-enacting the Old Rhythm of Deng Wei Xiangxue Sea Songs" written by him. In the Qing Dynasty, Emperor Kangxi and Emperor Qianlong came to Xiangxuehai several times to admire plum blossoms, and wrote dozens of poems praising plum blossoms. Among them, Kangxi came three times, and Qianlong came six times.

This place is higher than Wenmei Hall, but you can't see the stretch of Merlin at the foot of the mountain. Under the mountains in the distance are Suzhou folk houses with white walls and black tiles. Plum blossoms are half-blooming and half-falling on the slopes, which is also quite beautiful.

The mountain is not high, but we will soon reach the top of the mountain. You can really overlook Taihu Lake from the Lake-Watching Pavilion. Plum blossoms are shining on the slope, and smoke waves are vast in the distance.

Choose another way down the mountain, where there is also a Schima superba forest. Schima superba, also known as lotus magnolia, has white flowers and flower shapes like lotus in summer. But now the Schima superba has not yet grown, and only a forest can be seen. This path in the forest is called the Muhe Path.

When you reach halfway down the hill, you turn to the right. There is a small spring called Meiquan. Anyway, in Merlin, everything has to be related to Mei, right? There is a small pavilion next to it. The style of the pavilion is very ordinary. There are cliff carvings on the rocks, and I don't know who left them.

Go down to the forest at the bottom of the mountain, and there is also a plum pond. When Emperor Qianlong traveled to Xiangxuehai in Dengwei, he saw an old farmer planting plum trees here, so he planted a plum tree himself. You know, this is a plum blossom planted by the emperor. It must be guaranteed to survive and grow well. So for this plum blossom, the old farmer specially dug a small pool to water the plum blossoms.

There is a huge stone in the forest. The three characters "Xiangxue Sea" are engraved on the front and a couplet of poems on the back: "Looking at the vast Xiangxue Sea, my mountain bank is a good title." This is the last line of the poem "Exploring Plum Blossom from the Yuan Tomb in the Rain" written by Song Luo in the Qing Dynasty.

There is a Outlook Bridge in the middle of Xiangxi River. It turns out that there should be a gate here. I don't know if it is not open or due to the epidemic, but it cannot lead to the outside world. Beside the bridge is Majiachi, which is actually a section of Meixi. Maybe when people came to admire flowers, the horses came here and walked.

If you go out and walk along the Plum River to the end, if you don't pursue appreciating the plum trees from a high place, you can actually appreciate the Plum Sea across the stream without entering the Xiangxue Sea.