Yangzhou is located on the central North Jiangsu Plain; skirting on its south is the Yangtze River and cutting through at the centre is the Grand Canal. An ancient city originally going by the name of Han first built in 486 B.C., it has a population of 260,000.
  In the Han Dynasty (206 B.C.--A.D. 220), it was renamed Jiangdu; and in the Ming (1368--1644) it was made the seat of Yangzhou Prefecture. The Sui Dynasty saw the Grand Canal was dug to facilitate Emperor Yang's South China visit to Jiangdu and a prosperous Jiangdu was developed with "magnificent halls extending more than then miles and myriads of lights in the city lighting up the night sky".

  Among the many tourist attractions of Yangzhou are Slim West Lake, so named for its beauty to match the West Lake in Hanghzhou; White Dagoba dating back to the early Yuan (1271--1368); the ancient structure Pingshan Hall built by Ouyang Xiu during the Song (960--1279); and Monk Jianzhen Memorial Hall modeled on the Toshaodai Temple in Nara, Japan, in addition to the Temple of Grand Brightness, Tomb of Emperor Yang Di of the Sui, Shrine to Shi Kefa and the ancient Grand Canal.

  Travels by train or steam boat are convenient to Zhenjiang or Nanjing, where scheduled trains and passenger planes are available to other major cities in China. To serve tourists visiting Yangzhou, there are Xiyuan Hotel, Gudu Hotel, Cuiyan Hotel, Zhenyuan Hotel, Yangzhou Hotel, Wenfeng Hotel and Yuemingxuan Hotel.
  Traditional lacquerwork by Yangzhou are much sought after both at home and abroad.

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