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The Most Beautiful Areas in China
Beautiful
Suzhou
 Suzhou is located in the center of the Yangtze Delta, in
the south of Jiangsu Province, with Shanghai to the east, Zhejiang Province to
the south, Wuxi City to the west and the Yangtze River to the north. Since 42%
area of the city is covered by water, including a vast number of ponds and
streams, Suzhou is praised as the "Oriental Venice". Taihu Lake, four fifths of
which is in the territory of Suzhou, is one of the four largest fresh lakes in
China, with East Hill, West Hill and other scenic spots in its vicinity. The
city is cut by the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal from north to south. Together
with its mild climate, making it an available destination all year round,
fertile landscape and abundance of produce, it is no wonder that Suzhou is
called 'paradise on earth'.
Built in 514 BC, Suzhou is an ancient city with a 2500 years'
history. The unique characteristics of the past are still retained in
present-day Suzhou. The double-chessboard layout of Suzhou, with 'the streets
and rivers go side by side while the water and land routes run in parallel', are
preserved basically intact. Strolling the streets, you can feel the unique
lingering charm of this landscape left by its long history.
As the saying goes -"Gardens to the south of Yangtze River are
the best in the world, and Suzhou gardens are the best among them". These
gardens attain their high reputation not only for their vast numbers, but also
for their charming natural beauty and harmonious construction. At present more
than 60 gardens are kept intact in Suzhou, and a series of them have been listed
in the World Heritage List, including the Humble Administrator's Garden, the
Lingering Garden, the Garden of Master of Nets and the Mountain Villa with
Embracing Beauty.
Rating alongside these classical gardens are the exquisite water
townships in Suzhou. Zhouzhuang, Mudu, Tongli Town and so on should not be
missed by any visitor. In any water township of Suzhou, a number of Ming and
Qing dynasty preserved buildings can be found. The natural sights and human
landscape enhance each other's beauty, which is a great attraction to visitors
who linger there.
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