Reasons why you should visit Yangzhou

It's not the first city that comes up in your search results when you type in Jiangsu, but the city of Yangzhou certainly packs a punch as a tourist destination. It features both the ambiance of the popular destination of Hangzhou and gardens in the style of the equally popular city of Suzhou.

From the delightfully poetic water gardens to tantalizing tasty local food there is plenty to see and do in the city that sits at the oldest section of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal. It has a rich 2500-year history and an abundance of travel destinations.

Here are five reasons why you should visit Yangzhou:

Poetic Slender West Lake

Originating from water gardens built by rich salt merchants along Baoyang Lake, Slender West Lake got its name from the poem of a Hangzhou poet, Wang Hang. The poem, from the Qing Dynasty (1368-1644), depicted the area for its differing sense of beauty in comparison to Hangzhou’s West Lake in Zhejiang province. Slender West Lake is dotted with Suzhou-style gardens and amazes visitors with its graceful beauty of nature and architecture.

The hauntingly beautiful landscape at Slender West Lake in Yangzhou [Photo/provided to chinadaily.com.cn]  

Delicious Huaiyang cuisine dishes