WUXI
Wuxi lies to the north of Thai Lake, in Jiangsu province. It is one of the important industrial areas in China. It is 4650 square kilometers in area and the population is 4240000.
Wuxi is in the plain area, the southern part of it is hilly areas, and there are a lot of rivers and lakes. It belongs to monsoon climate of inferior torrid zone. The annual temperature is 15.5ºC, the annual precipitation is 1100mm, and the blank frost period can last 239 days. In Wuxi, the water and soil resources are abundant, and also, there are some other mineral resources, such as marble and lime stone.
The county industry in Wuxi is the most developing area in China.
Wuxi is the main center of cotton textiles and one of the important bases of machine and electron industry. The pottery production of Yixing is famous both in China and abroad. Dingshu Town is the main producing area and it is called the city of pottery. The agriculture is developing, there is rice, fresh-water fish, cocoon, fruits and so on. It is the famous land of fish and rice in our country.
Wuxi is one of the important hubs of water transport and land transport in Jiangnan area. The railway, inland water transport and highway are developed. Also the airplanes here can take you to Beijing and some other cities. Thai Lake scenery area that crosses Wuxi and Suzhou is one of the important places of interest in China.
Thai Lake is the third biggest fresh lake in China, there are many islands in the lake, and the scene is very beautiful. In addition, there are some other places of interest, such as Yunv Pool in Yixing, Dongpo Hall, Xingguo Tower in Jiangyin, Xuxiake memorial hall and so on.

Tourist Attractions in Wuxi:

Li Garden

Formerly Fanli's residence and back garden, Li Garden (Li yuan) is set in front of the Hubin Hotel, on the shore of Taihu Lake. The garden is actually a spread of artificial bridges and pagodas dotted around small fishponds. The most interesting sight is the 1,000 metre long corridor that winds its way through the park. Along the way are inscriptions of ancient calligraphers. In the springtime, when the plum blossoms, the garden is often heavily crowded with local visitors.

Lingshan Buddha

25 kilometres from the city's downtown area, the Lingshan Sakyamuni Buddha (Lingshan dafo) stands solemnly at the site of famous Tang Dynasty Xiangfu Temple, which was ruined after a series of ancient wars. The bronze icon is 250 feet long, 100 feet higher than the Statue of Liberty. Entirely made of tin and copper, the statue weighs more than 700 tons. On the left side, the Shiwuwei seal is supposed to reduce suffering in the world while the Yuyuan seal on the right delivers happiness. The character on the Buddha's chest represents solemnity and virtue. With the nearby Tiahu Lake and a beautiful range of hills, the Lingshan Buddha attracts the faithful, as well as travelers, especially from Hong Kong and Japan, the former of which are said to have contributed some $150,000 towards the construction of the site.

During Spring Festival, visitors from all over the world gather at the Xiangfu Temple to listen to the tolling of the bell, believed to bring good luck. The bell - at 3.5 metres high and weighing in at 12 tons - is the biggest in South China.

Plum Garden

Backing on to the Dragon Hill 7 kilometres west of Wuxi, the Plum Garden (Meiyuan) is most famous for the thousands of red plum trees and flowers planted there. The garden used to be part of a small private residence during the Qing Dynasty but has since been re-landscaped and expanded to cover more than 70 thousand square metres, housing over 5,000 plum trees and 2,000 plum bonsais. The oldest specimens are said to have lived for over 100 years. There are numerous scenic spots in the garden, including the Tianxin Terrace (Tianxin tai), Meiyuan Carving Stone (Meiyuan keshi), Xiaoluo Float (Xiaoluo fu), Xiangxue Sea (Xiangxue hai), Qingfen Chamber (Qingfen xuan) and the Huoran Cave (Huoran dong). The Mei Pagoda, the highest point in the garden, offers a spectacular springtime view over the sea of red plum blossom and the Taihu Lake.

Turtle Head Isle

18 kilometres southwest of Wuxi, Turtle Head Isle (Yuantouzhu) is the city's most attractive park. It is actually not an isle at all but a peninsular shaped, unsurprisingly, like the head of a turtle. A small lighthouse stands at the western tip of the park. To its north is the dock, which operates ferries to the Three Hills Isles (Sanshan) where the view of the Taihu Lake is spectacular. A visit to the park is incomplete without a stop off at the highest point - Brightness Pavilion (Guangming ding). If you get tired, enjoy the scenery of the lake from the comfort of one of the teahouses dotted along the banks.

Xihui Park

Covering an area of 45 square kilometres, the Xihui Park (Xihui gongyuan) is set on the western edge of Wuxi between Xi Shan and Hui Shan. The park is most famous for its artificial lake surrounded by paved paths and the seven-story Dragon Light Pagoda (Longguang ta) on the top of Xi Shan. The octagonal pagoda was first built in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644AD) but burned down during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911AD). The current one is a brick and wood replica. However, it still offers a bird's eye view over the city and Taihu Lake.

The 75-metre-high Huishan Hill is the highest point in Wuxi, and is well-known for its spring water. Other fascinating sights on the hill include the Carefree Garden (Jichang Yuan) and the remains of Huishan Monastery (Huishan si).