Wuzhen -- While many of you may have never been to this antique town, surely most of you must have heard of it. Among the six ancient towns acknowledged in South China, Wuzhen stands out for its well-preserved lifestyles that descend from fine tradition. Daily life here goes on as it has for the past 2,000 years.

People in the secluded fairyland live a simple life. Many of them breed silkworms, and most residents have maintained the custom of buying fruit and vegetables from trade boats through the windows of their waterside houses. To see coppersmiths, wood-carvers, and silk-spinners work at their age-old crafts is never a strange thing in Wuzhen, where foreign visitors find it easy enough to exchange words with the local bicycle rickshaw drivers in simple English. Benefiting from an inherited harmony between human and nature, the local community at the same time enjoys the pleasant living environment that comes from social progress.

Wuzhen lies in the north of Zhejiang Province and to the west of the Beijing-Hangchou Grand Canal. It boasts the boundary area of two eastern provinces (Zhejiang and Jiangsu), three prefectures (Jiaxing, Huzhou, and Suzhou cities) and seven counties (Wucheng , Gui'an, Chongde, Tongxiang, Xiushui, Wujiang, and Zhenze).

In history, the earliest record of the old town dates from the Spring and Autumn (770-446BC) and the Warring States (475-221BC) periods, when the region served as the boundary between the Wu and Yue kingdoms.

During the Qin Dynasty (221-206BC), Wuzhen belonged to the Kuaiji Prefecture. With the Chexi River (today's Shihe or Shi River) as the boundary, the western part was named Wudun, which belonged to Wucheng County, while the eastern part was named Qingdun, which belonged to Youquan County.

In the Tang Dynasty (618-907), Wudun and Qingdun were renamed as Wuzhen and Qingzhen respectively. This administrative situation lasted till the year 1950 when Wuzhen and Qingzhen were co-administered by Tongxiang County.

Geographically, Wuzhen is widely acclaimed as an "Oriental Venice" with river ways interlaced throughout the land. For over 2000 years, the antique community has well preserved its lifestyle as the rivers and creeks, spanned with stone bridges in various designs, flow through the town, while the waterside houses and outside corridors dutifully guard the tranquil territory.

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