Introduction

Orchid pavilion is 12.5km southwest of Shaoxing at the foot of Lanzhu Mountain. It’s the site of China’s most famous drinking party and spawned a drinking game that inspired men of letters all over China. In the 4^th century AD, Wang Xizhi, a renowned calligrapher organized a party at Orchid Pavilion. Since poets tend to be romantic souls, they found various ways to entertain themselves in style. Wang Xizhi devised a literary game where the poets would sit on the banks of a small stream then float a small cup filled with wine downstream. Whomever the cup stopped in front, that poet had to compose a poem or drink the wine as a penalty. A mixutr of good wine and tranquil scenery inspired 37 poems that day. Wang Xizhi compiled the poems into an anthology and wrote its preface, which became the Lanting Preface to the Orchid Pavilion.

Today Orchid Pavilion is a pilgrimage site for those who daydream of holding their own drinking party. The Goose Pool is a major sight at Orchid Pavilion, so is the stream where the poets played their game. Wang Xizhi’s Memorial Temple is also at this site. One of the pavilions features a memorial tablet written by an emperor in his honor. The Lanting Calligraphy Museum is a good place to check out Wang Xizhi’s flowing calligraphic style.