Wuzhen, Zhejiang Province

The Changjiang Delta area (Northern Zhejiang and southern Jiangsu) is full of small canals, ponds and lakes.  There are many small towns crisscrossed by a network of canals, so dense and complicated that only locals can navigate among them.  Locals call these towns "Shuixiang" (Water towns).  Wuzhen and Zhouzhuang have been developed to cater to tourists.

The famous Jinghang Canal, or Grand Canal, runs through Wuzhen.  Its straight and wide channel spans between Beijing and Hangzhou, a distance of 1930 km (1200 miles) with It is the longest canal in the world.  Most of the construction of the Grand Canal was during the Sui Dynasty (c. 600 AD), but it used the course of many pre-existing canals.  The canal was a vital thoroughfare during the Yuan Dynasty (Mongol rule).  Marco Polo mentioned in his book "Il Milione" that large ships lined one after another, transporting goods into the capital, Dadu (now Beijing).  However, many scholars do not believe that Marco Polo went as far as Dadu.