This special edition of Culture Spotlight will be a four-part series sharing takeaways from a recent trip to our sister city, Suzhou. Enjoy!

I’m writing to you just days before Thanksgiving, with the glow of a recent journey still warming me like a little lantern I’m carrying home. This fall, I spent 17 days traveling through four cities in China — days filled with learning, surprises, joy, and those blink-fast moments when something is so beautiful you simply whisper, “I can’t believe I get to be here.”

My adventure began in Suzhou, Portland’s sister city — a dreamland for anyone who loves classical gardens. Our Executive Director Elizabeth, our Director of Philanthropy Jesse, and I traveled with a group of Lan Su supporters, many of whom are beloved Lan Su Guides. And you know me: put me in a classical garden with my guide volunteers and I instantly become the happiest culture nerd alive. Watching them light up at every moon gate, rock formation, and historical detail made my heart do cartwheels. And because joy should be shared, I want to bring you into those moments with me. 

So, in true Thanksgiving fashion, here are a few things I’m most grateful for on this adventure — my Chapter 1 of 4 travel notes: 

I am grateful that Suzhou welcomed us like family. 

Many people can visit Suzhou’s classical gardens. But on this trip, the city — from Suzhou Museum to the intangible cultural heritage studios to our counterparts at the classical gardens — opened their arms to us as if we were long-lost cousins returning home.

Very few people ever receive true behind-the-scenes access, yet there we were at the storied Humble Administrator’s Garden, being personally greeted and guided by Director Xue himself (pictured). He led us through quiet courtyards and working areas where penjing masters tend to trees shaped over centuries. We stood beside their extraordinary penjing collection, watching a repotting demonstration that felt like witnessing calligraphy written in soil and roots. 

I was amazed by how sincerely all the gardens, museums, and the city of Suzhou value who Lan Su is, and how deeply they appreciate the work we do to bring the mission of a classical Chinese garden to life in Portland. 

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I am grateful for the quietest moment inside one of the busiest museums. 

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I am grateful for the night at our sister garden. 

And most of all, I am grateful for you. 

Thank you for reading my joyful reminiscings on your screen. Thank you for supporting Lan Su — through every visit, every membership, every donation, every cup of tea, every delightful little discovery in the Garden Shop. This trip reminded me, once again, why our work matters so deeply: because a classical garden is more than a garden. It is a place where culture blossoms.  

This is chapter 1 of 4 of my travel blogs, I have so much more to share with you from this China trip — the food we ate, the artists we befriended, my observations in the cultural industry, and even a Hanfu dress-up experience I had in Xian. Please keep an eye out for me on our Instagram, Facebook, and the next few issues of Culture Spotlight.  

Happy Thanksgiving!