Pond Life · Photos
The courtyard, the rooms, and a year in the chestnut grove
Real views of the courtyards and rooms. Months reflect publication or source collections, not exact photo dates.
The front hall under the Pond Life sign
This year’s chestnuts, fresh off the trees
Hen-of-the-woods, which turns up in the chestnut grove after the July rains
A bolete on the hillside above the rooms
Mushrooms after rain
Mushroom on the forest floor
Wildflowers on the slope in summer
The rebuilt main meeting room, seats 30–50
The rebuilt library
Tea, set out in the lounge
A guest room after the 2025 refit
The sitting area of a guest room
A loft room — the spiral stair leads to the upper floor
The spiral iron stair in a loft room: steep and narrow
Early Tang A201 “Watching the Fish”, double room (2025 room collection)
The small meeting room: 36 m², one long table, 10–20 people
The terrace outside the small meeting room, in autumn
The wooden deck off the small meeting room; indoors and out work as one space
Early Tang A201 “Watching the Fish”
Early Tang A202 “Watching the Stars”, double room
Early Tang A203 “Watching the Mountain”, twin room
Early Tang A206 “Watching the Lotus” — trees right outside the glass
The balcony of A206 in autumn
The main meeting room, rebuilt in early 2025, set classroom-style
From the main meeting room balcony: Jingyu village, the Wall on the far ridge
Teaware on the display shelves
The courtyard in late autumn
The old tree beyond the courtyard
The lane into the hotel after rain
Red leaves along the lane
Fallen leaves in an old stone mortar
A carpet of leaves
Leaves under the trees
Autumn through the lounge windows
Dried red dates
Roasted chestnuts
Signposts in the grove: restaurant, rooms
A room with a freestanding bath
Autumn colour outside a floor-to-ceiling window
When the chestnut leaves come down
An autumn tree seen from the terrace
Chestnuts just knocked down, burrs and all
A long table laid in the restaurant
The guest blocks reflected in the pond
The path in from the gate
Pond, lawn and guest blocks
Li Xiaoxie, the open-air pavilion under the chestnut trees, holds 30–50
The reading room
The long table in the reading room, also used for small meetings
A long table laid outdoors under the trees
