The town of Luzhi in Wuxian City, 18 km to the east of Suzhou, has a history of over 1,000 years. The town, with a population of 50,000, has 32 administrative villages under its jurisdiction. Of its total area of 5,000 hectares, 3,300 hectares are farmland and 1,330 hectares are covered with lakes and rivers.
The ancient town is a leading scenic and tourist spot in the Taihu Lake Scenic Area. It has numerous cultural relics under the protection of the State council. Among the most famous scenes in town are Clean Wind of the Duck Pond, Fengshu Clean Spring, Wusong Snow Wave, Futu Setting Sun, Changhong Moon Reflections, Lamps on Lotus Leaves and Xihui Market. Besides, there are traces left by famous historical figures such as the Tomb of Sun Fei, Palace of King Fuchai and Tomb of Prime Minister Zhang Cang of the West Hang Dynasty. Lu Guimeng, a poet of the late Tang Dynasty, also had stayed in Luzhi.
Another special feature of the town is its numerous bridges and plenty of waters. The one-square-kilometer town proper once had 72.5 bridges, 41 of which still exist, each having its unique design. In terms of density of bridges, Mudu doubtlessly exceeds Venice.
Today, a new district is being developed, changing ancient Mudu into a modern town opening to the outside world. In this district, there are function zones for industry, villa residences and holiday resorts. In the villa zone, four villa areas and four apartment areas have been completed with a total floor space of 400,000 square meters. The quality, environment, infrastructure and service in the zone are all highly appreciated by domestic and foreign friends. In the holiday resort zone, two vocational centers, the Yangcheng Garden and Hongyun Garden, have been constructed; recreational facilities provided include a park for water sports, swimming pool, golf court, etc. The town has one secondary vocational school, two middle schools, two primary schools, one hospital and one cultural center.
(China.org.cn June 24, 2004)
