Apart
from being endowed with
a unique charming vista
peculiar to the water
township in Southern
China, Tongli is rich in
both cultural relics and
traditional
architectures.
Tongli, a picturesque
and elegant town, has
become world-known for
its having wonderful
scenery, classic
building and precious
relics.
Located on the bank of
Taihu Lake and the shore
of Great Canal, about 18
kilometres to Suzhou,
Tongli is a small town
with 33,500 population,
covers a total area of
62.54 square kilometers.
Surrounded by water on
four sides, the place
looks as if it were
inlaid in the center of
five lakes including
Jiuli, Yeze, Nanxing and
Pangshan. The proper of
this town is divided
into seven blocks by
fifteen streams.
However, they have been
combined into a complete
whole by 49 bridges in
different shape. With
their dwellings built
beside the stream, the
locals all enjoy the
convenience to travel by
boat. In such a case,
Tongli is acclaimed as
one of the
well-preserved ancient
towns with water scenery
in Jiangsu Province.
Tuisi (Pondering Over
after Retirement) Garden
is one of the major
scenic spots in Tongli,
Chen Congzhou, a
renowned gardening
artist, once described
Tongli as “a museum of
Chinese classic
buildings”, while Tuisi
Garden is none other
than a pearl in this
museum. In 2000, it was
listed as one of
Unesco’s World Cultural
Heritage sites. Endowed
with both historical and
cultural relics, Tongli
has attracted many film
and TV makers to use
this garden as their
permanent base for
exterior shooting. As a
consequense, ever since
1984, about one hundred
works have been
produced, including the
well-received “The
family”, “Spring”,
“Autumn”, “A Dream of
Red Mansion” and “An
Unofficial Biography of
Emperor Qianlong”. In
April 1999, this place
was formally designated
by the Association of
Chinese Film Makers as
China Tongli Film
Shooting Base. |