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By Cecily Liu Standing on a hilltop overlooking Cliveden Gardens on a bright wintry day, its dark-green lake surrounded woodland stippled with red and gold leaves and centuries old trees took my breath away. Cliveden is no famous holiday destination, but a "local park" Auntie Zhao took me for a casual afternoon walk. Located just 30 miles west of London, the 350-year-old stately home and its 150 hectares of garden is a hidden gem that I never heard of during my eight years living in the UK. As I stood at the heart of this tranquil garden, I understood why the English countryside has inspired generations of artists and writers. It also taught me a lesson about the British culture of understatement, a certain modesty linked to confidence, evident in Auntie Zhao's casual remarks about the walk, which has become a natural part of her relaxed life in Berkshire. Despite its history as the home of an earl, three countesses, two dukes and a Prince of Wales, Cliveden is hardly known to the hundreds and thousands of Chinese visitors arriving in the UK every year. "The English landscape is more beautiful because its beauty is understated," my friend Will said to me later as we walked through a Paul Nash exhibition at Tate Britain. He pointed out a Nash painting of a pastoral Buckinghamshire scene featuring expansive field of green woodland and golden sunshine in the distance. "This is the landscape I grew up with," said Will. | 
