Yaozhou ruins is close to metro station gongyuanqian of line 2 and 1 and can be reached by car as well. It is also within the Beijing road cultural zone and thus can be included in a walk.
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Yaozhou Ruins Tea House
The Yaoshou Ruins, also known as Jiuyao Garden, are located on Jiaoyu Road in Yuexiu District, Guangzhou, China, near the Southern Theatre. Established during the Southern Han Dynasty in 919 by Emperor Liu Yan. The area originally featured a approximately 1,600 meters long lake, historically called West Lake. Within the lake, an island was created for the purpose of alchemy and seeking medicinal herbs, hence the name Yaozhou, meaning “Medicine Island”. The lake housed nine unique rocks known as Jiuyao Stones.
By 1949, the Yaozhou Ruins had been reduced to an area of just over 2,000 square meters, with only 440 square meters of water remaining, and eight Taihu rocks. Restoration efforts began in 1988, which included unearthing buried scenic stones and partially restoring the lake. In 1993, a gate tower and a stele corridor were constructed in the style of the Five Dynasties period. The gate tower is seven meters wide and 4.8 meters deep with a hanging mountain roof. The site was declared a Guangdong Provincial Cultural Relic Protection Unit in 1989.
On a normal weekday this garden featuring a Tea House is quite empty. We can highly recommend to take a visit and relax there for a while. Even on a weekend it is not overly crowded for Chinese standards, as it is accessible from one street away of the main area. Which is still very close, yet to far to be found by a large part of tourist or visitors in the area.
