Silk Road journeys in Jiangsu

Located at Taohuayin of Huai'an, near ex-Premier Zhou Enlai's former residence, the 35-hectare memorial hall district was built in 1992, encompassing a small island, vast water and greenbelt. Videos and images depicting Zhou’s life as well as exhibitions about him are on display at the hall. Zhou Enlai (1898 – 1976) was the first Premier of the People's Republic of China. He was instrumental in consolidating the control of the Communist Party's rise to power, formulating the foreign policy, and reviving the Chinese economy. As a skilled and able diplomat, Zhou also served as the Chinese foreign minister from 1949 to 1958. Advocating peaceful co-existence with the West following the inconclusive Korean War, he participated in the 1954 Geneva Conference, the 1955 Bandung Conference, and helped orchestrate Richard Nixon's 1972 visit to China. He helped devise policies regarding the bitter disputes with the U.S., Taiwan, the Soviet Union (after 1960), India and Vietnam. [Photo/jstour.com]

The Governor's Palace of Viceroy of Water Transport in Huai'an is located at the heritage site of the ancient complex, which used to be resided by the viceroy of water transport in Ming and Qing dynasties. Water transport was key to the flourishing of ancient dynasties, just like the dredging of the Grand Canal in Sui Dynasty (581-618) laid the foundation for the prosperity in later Tang and Song dynasties. Chuzhou (ancient Huai'an) was a hub in water transport between north and south China, and that was why the only governing body of the nation’s water transport was located here. [Photo/provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Buildings of the Huai'an Yamen, or the ancient Huai'an Governing House, date back to as early as Southern Song Dynasty (Date) and were renovated in Ming Dynasty. With a history of 2,200 years, Huai'an was of great military importance in history. [Photo/chinadaily.com.cn]

Located about 3km away from downtown Lianyungang, the Kongwang Hill was named after great ancient Chinese philosopher Confucius, since he was said to have climbed to have a view over the sea centuries ago. There were archeological excavations that yielded 105 Buddhist carvings on the cliffs of the hill, which date back to AD 170 in the Eastern Han Dynasty, nearly 200 years earlier than the Buddhist carvings at the Mogao Grottoes in Dunhuang county in Gansu province. The Buddhist carvings on the cliffs of Kongwang Hill are witnesses to and traces of the eastward spreading of Buddhism through the ancient Silk Road in China. [Photo/jstour.com]