During my visit in early 2014, I was not aware of the Grand Canal nomination despite it gaining inscription later that year. But visiting Suzhou and going out of the railway station already allows a fair glimpse into this massive engineering marvel deserving of many superlatives. The canal stretch fronting the railway station is already quite visually pleasing as it is backdropped by massive Pingmen Gate and a nearby smaller water gate; this section of old city wall was rebuilt in 2012. The old city's Ring Canal is part of the Suzhou Section of Jiangnan Canal, and true to its function it is still being used by far-reaching cargo boats and barges that are vital for commerce and transportation as well as by tourist boats that can go to the more popular scenic areas. 

The surroundings of the Humble Administrator's Garden and the Lion's Grove Garden coincide with the Pingjiang Conservation Area, whose 800-year old canal complex is identified as a part of the Jiangnan Canal. This, therefore, makes Suzhou a good site to see inscribed parts of the Grand Canal that can support larger vessels, as well as a network of interior waterways navigable only by smaller hand-paddled boats. 

Although the 2,500-year old historic block of Pingjiang does not seem to be as popular as the Shantang River Conservation Area and Fengqiao Scenic Spot for "idyllic lantern-dotted views" of the Grand Canal, it also has canal boat tours, ancient bridges, traditional Suzhou-style houses (100+ of which are protected heritage buildings), lively streetscapes, and interesting teashops and eateries (I secured here not only a Yixing tea set but also a nice Su embroidered work; which to this day remain as some of the best souvenirs from my early days of WHS hunting). Pingjiang's layout, with intertwined water and road networks, is in fact considered as a hallmark of ancient Chinese water towns. In 2005, the conservation of the Pingjiang won the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Heritage Awards for Cultural Heritage Conservation (Honorable Mention). Interestingly, in 2015 --one year after the Grand Canal's inscription-- Pingjiang Road, along with the older Shantang Road, also got declared as Historical and Cultural Blocks of China. I will be visiting the other sections of the Grand Canal this year, so this review will be updated.

(Photos: Pingmen & the ring canal as seen from the roofed Pingmen bridge; an interior canal in Pingjiang)