Face-lift breathed new life into city

Hangzhou resident Ruan Xiuhua can scarcely fathom the changes that have occurred in the area where she used to live.

"My old home sat in the current Mituo Temple Park area, and it's hard to believe that there used to be more than 400 households there," the 62 year-old said.

The former temple was built in 1878 and was one of the top four temples in Hangzhou in the late Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), but it gradually turned into a slum after the breakout of the "cultural revolution" (1966-76).