The Grand Culture culture and tourism is promoted in the city of Suzhou where the 3rd Grand Canal Culture and Tourism Expo is scheduled to be held from September 22nd to 25th.
At the beginning of this year, Suzhou started the construction of "Ten Scenic Spots along the Grand Canal" in a bid to build the "most exciting section" of the Grand Canal Cultural Belt by integrating ancient city protection, cultural and tourism integration, and Jiangnan cultural brand building.
The Grand Canal that has been flowing for thousands of years is still busy in Wangting Town of Suzhou, where the Grand Canal enter Suzhou from north to south.
In 2019, Wangting Town tapped into the Grand Canal culture by building a 300-mu canal park here.
The Canal Park exhibits cultural relics, the Canal Mart and other characteristic cultural tourism projects, attracting many citizens and tourists from the surrounding areas.
With a history of more than four thousand years of rice cultivation, Wangting Town is a well-known "rice town" in the country.
Located in Wangting Canal Park, Wangting Guest House was built in the Sui Dynasty. It used to be an institution for the transportation of rice and supplies and document delivery.
Today, historical and cultural buildings such as Wangting Guest House and Wangyun Pavilion have been restored in the park while construction has finished on many projects such as the Grand Canal Cultural and Sports Center, the Grand Canal Historical and Cultural Blocks, and the Canal Service Area.
Xue Xiaoyan, Deputy Director, Cultural and Tourism Bureau of Wangting Town
These key projects are expected to promote the in-depth exploration of the Wangting Grand Canal culture, create the night skyline of the canal, and promote the overall improvement of cultural and tourism projects in the town.
Starting from Wangting Town and down the Grand Canal, Wumen Wangting, Hushuguan, Huqiu Pagoda, and Fengqiao Night Park form the ten scenic spots in the Suzhou section of the Grand Canal.
Suzhou has repaired and restored the world cultural heritages such as the Tiger Hill Yunyan Temple Pagoda and the Precious Belt Bridge. The city has also used vernier calipers to measure and optimize the drainage of the top of the city wall to repair the swelling and cracks of the city wall of Panmen, the only ancient water city gate that has remained intact in China.
Yang Wen, Deputy General Manager, Suzhou Panmen Scenic Area
Scientific monitoring data can detect the displacement or settlement of the city wall so that some measures can be taken. During the monitoring process, the staff found that there was an outward displacement of the city wall, so temporary protective measures were taken.
In the future, Suzhou will integrate the Grand Canal Cultural Belt with the construction of the National Cultural Park and the construction of "Ten Grand Canal Scenic Spots", launch the Jiangnan Canal Cultural Forum, organize original themed dance dramas nationwide tour, and launch canal-themed cultural activities and sports events so as to better spread the Grand Canal culture.
Wang Gang, Director, Cultural Reform and Industrial Development Division of the Publicity Department of the Suzhou Municipal Party Committee
Suzhou will take the opportunity of hosting the third Grand Canal Cultural Tourism Expo to implement canal-themed literary and artistic boutique creation, cultural resource excavation, brand activity building, cultural industry project construction and platform carrier construction projects, so that the ancient Grand Canal will ignite new vitality in the new era.
