By Gisela Pan (Shanghai Daily)
Updated: 2007-10-11 10:53

Its rich history and geography gave birth to Suzhou's distinctive culture. The Suzhou area is one of the sites where the Chinese textile industry originated. Suzhou embroidery, along with Hunan embroidery, Guangdong embroidery and Sichuan embroidery, are the four famous embroideries of China.

Pingtan was also born in Suzhou.

Pingtan is a traditional story-telling art in which two performers "sing" a story back and forth.

Pingtan, Kunqu Opera and Suzhou Opera are known as the "Three Extraordinary Treasures" of Suzhou art.

Some of Suzhou's famous sons include Fan Zhongyan in the Song Dynasty and Gu Yan, Wu Zhang and Tai Yan in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).

But doesn't only feast your eyes on the beautiful scenery.

Suzhou cuisine is time-honored as well. Song Shu Gui Yu (sweet and sour fried Mandarin fish) and Jiao Hua Ji (beggar's chicken) are famed both home and abroad. Dried beancurd is a specialty of Suzhou and should not be missed.

Tongli Town

Originally named Fushi, Tongli is an old but well-preserved watertown with a history of more than 1,000 years. Tongli is a destination where you can spend a holiday experiencing traditional Chinese culture.

From ancient times, it has been teeming with poets, painters, Confucian scholars and top government officials. Dozens of stone tablets from different periods are preserved in Tongli.

In 1981 Tongli Town was declared one of the 13 national standard tour towns of the Taihu Lake region.

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