Travel

The Chinese Garden, Zurich. An Ideal World

On the shores of Lake Zurich you are bound to discover something unexpected - a Chinese garden. It's a perfect rectangular garden, surrounded by a low wall, so something calls the attention that this is no coincidence and this isn't a garden within a garden like other oriental elements inserted into European parks. The Chinese Garden from Zurich is a self-contained world, an ideal microcosm full of symbolism with water as the central element.

The garden, inaugurated in 1994, is a gift from Zurich's Chinese partner town Kunming, as reminiscence for Zurich's technical and scientific assistance in the development of the Kunming city drinking water supply and drainage. The garden is an expression of one of the main themes in Chinese culture, the «Three Friends in Winter» – three plants that together brave the cold season – pine, bamboo and winter cherry. The bamboo is representing a forest, with its deep unique sound when wind is blowing. The pine symbolizes the male principle among the trees and a long life. The winter cherry is a joyful symbol of spring. The garden opens daily from March to October.

I like Chinese gardens lots, partly because they are so colorful, partly because they are so different from the occidental ones and partly because everything grasps meaning here, even the smallest detail. And then they are so exotic in my eyes that even the calligraphy on the golden plate at the entrance stating Chinese Garden fascinated me. In the Chinese culture the nine nail rows and the red color of the gate originally were reserved for the emperor and for 300 years they have been an essential architectural element of Chinese gardens. The wall has some small windows, with bamboo and lotus flower tiles. Eaves and final bricks as well as the frieze bear small sculptural figures, representing the Chinese dragon of clouds. The carved panels on both sides, are excerpts from Chinese tales.

The pond is lined with willows, as symbol of pure water and holiness. There's also an artificial mountain that together with the water represent Yin and Yang. The rock formations represent the bones in the human body. A bridge connecs the pavilion's island and the inner garden, reminding of the island of immortals. The circular pavilion situated in the middle of the garden represents the fifth cardinal direction from the Chinese culture.

The hexagonal pavilion's design is full of allegories: the Phoenix is a symbol of the empress and of the female beauty and on the inside prevail symbols of good luck and landscapes. The water palace, the heart of the Chinese garden from Zurich has a carved archway devoted to the spring. The paintings on the exterior walls, doors and windows are deliberately kept simple, for the visitors to be able to concentrate to the inner qualities of the building. Its terrace opens to the water surface, showing all important elements of the garden.

The Chinese Garden from Zurich is situated a pleasant walk by the lake from the city center. It might not have the same historical and cultural value as a traditional Chinese garden hundreds of years old, but it's definitely a bridge between East and West and a symbol of collaboration and of humanity.

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