A Grateful Heart of Mommy Angel: A Visit to Hanshan Temple in Suzhou

Today is still a holiday here in China, so I decided to visit a temple in Suzhou. It is an old Buddhist temple located at the town of Fengqioa, near the Bridge when you are going to DaRunfa or RT Mart.
"The temple was first built in the Tianjian period of the Liang Dynasty (502-557). A famous monk, Hanshan, was said to have been in charge of the temple during the Tang Dynasty (618-907) so it was named after him.
Hanshan Temple is famed in East Asia because of the poem "A Night Mooring by Maple Bridge" (楓橋夜泊), by Tang Dynasty poet, Zhang Ji. The poem describes the melancholy scene of a dejected traveller, moored at night at Fengqiao, hearing the bells of Hanshan Temple:

月落烏啼霜滿天，
江楓漁火對愁眠。
姑蘇城外寒山寺，
夜半鐘聲到客船。

Yuè luò wū tí shuāng mǎn tiān,
Jiāng fēng yú huǒ duì chóu mián.
Gūsū chéngwài Hánshān Sì,
Yèbàn zhōngshēng dào kèchuán.

While I watch the moon go down, a crow caws through the frost;
Under the shadows of maple-trees a fisherman moves with his torch;
And I hear, from beyond Suzhou, from the temple on Cold Mountain,
Ringing for me, here in my boat, the midnight bell.

The poem is still popularly read in China, Japan and Korea. It is part of the primary school curriculum in both China and Japan. The ringing of the bell at Hanshan Temple on Chinese New Year eve is a major pilgrimage and tourism event for visitors from these countries." -wikipedia-

I got off on the bus stop right in front of RT Mart and just walked over to the bridge then turn left on the first street. Looking from the bridge the place looks quite. I could only see few people walking around the place. I like the place since it's near a canal and many barges are passing every second. I went inside the park and good thing it was free. Then when I went further in, there was a big gate leading to the temple which has the sign "Entrance Ticket to Hanshan Temple" that means going inside and seeing what's in there is not for free. I decided not to go since there were too many people going in and I think it would be too crowded inside so I just enjoyed the view from the outside.
I was surprised to find many tourists from all over the world trying to visit the temple. The reason that I couldn't see people walking on the road it that they have their own buses, tourist buses, taking them there. Most of them are Chinese but I've overheard people talking in Japanese and Koreans. They even have their flag carried by their tour guide. Here are some of my photos with the temple and the place around the area.

Hansha temple view from the outside.