Twilight in Wuxi, an ancient city by the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, the longest and the oldest surviving manmade river in the world.
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The Grand Canal was constructed during the Sui Dynasty (581 – 618) by connecting numerous ancient waterways between the South Song capital and the second Ming capital via Nanjing, Suzhou and Shanghai.
Until the 20th century, about 70 percent of goods transported in China were via this water channel.
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Tongli, near Suzhou, is one of the numerous water towns along the Grand Beijing-Hangzhou Canal.
Today, the main street in the town remains in the traditional style, at least superficially. In the old days, the upper floors and the back quarters of the street-front stores would be non-commercial residences.