Possibly the site of our next orphanage

Huzhou is the only city around the Taihu Lake that is named after it. Located in northern Zhejiang Province, it neighbors Shanghai in the east, Hangzhou in the south, Nanjing in the west, and opposite the Taihu Lake from Suzhou and Wuxi in the north. It is an important commodity collecting and distributing center and water and road transportation center on the border of Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui and Shanghai. Huzhou City is composed of the downtown district, Nanxun District, Linghu District, Deqing County, Changxing County and Anji County, with a total area of 5,817 kilometers and a population of 2.54 million.

Nationality: Han
City Flower: Lily
City Tree: Ginkgo

Location: Located in the north part of Zhejiang Province, Huzhou City stands on the south bank of the Taihu Lake and adjacent to Jiangsu and Anhui provinces. It enjoys an advantageous location, 75 kilometers (47 miles) north of Hangzhou, 160 kilometers (99 miles) west of Shanghai.

History: Huzhou is a city with over 2,200 years of history since it was set as a county of Chu Kingdom in the year of 248 BC. The Sui Dynasty (581-618) governed this area as a prefecture and named it as Huzhou for its adjacency to the Taihu Lake.

Physical Features: The city's terrain slopes downward from southwest to northeast. The northern part is a mountainous region whilst the east is a low, flat plain.

Climate: Huzhou City has a subtropical humid monsoon climate with an annual average temperature of 16 C (61 F) and rainfall of 1,200 millimeters (47 inches). Generally, the climate of the city is warm and humid.

When to Go: Visitors can choose to visit Huzhou at any season, but especially in spring and autumn.

Special Local Products: Handicrafts: brocade and silk, Huzhou brush writing, Huzhou feather fans, purple-grit tea pots of Changxing County

Foods: Taihu lily bulbs, ginkgo-nuts of Changxing County and zisun tea.

Tourist Tips: Transportation from Huzhou to Hangzhou is very convenient. Visitors can get there within an hour. Due to the expressway between Shanghai and Zhejiang, the distance between Huzhou and Shanghai is now nearer and takes only 70 minutes.

Huzhou is one of the first cities open to the outside world. In February, 1985, it was listed as one of the coastal economic opening zones in the Yangtze River Delta. In 1992, it was again listed by the State Council as one of the 14 key cities in the Yangtze River Delta or the Yangtze River Valley to be "planned first and developed first." The city has six provincial economic and technological development zones, namely Huzhou, Mogan Mountains, Nanxun, Changxing, Anji and Surrounding Taihu Lake Zones. Since the adoption of opening and reform policy twenty years ago, Huzhou has achieved outstanding success in economic development. In 1997, the GDP of the city reached 29.802 billion yuan RMB, with a per capita GDP of 11,707 yuan RMB. Huzhou is one of the rich cities in the nation, with its farmers earning 3,648 yuan RMB of pure income and its city residents earning 7,183 yuan RMB of disposable income.

Huzhou is a city which boasts beautiful scenery with delicate mountains and waters.

It neighbors the boundless Taihu Lake on the north, and the green Tianmu Mountains with an ocean of bamboo forest on the west. The city has both a forest of sky-scrapers with fresh and new atmosphere and the picturesque scene of little bridges and brooks at the countryside. Huzhou is a city with civilized citizens, clean environment and excellent social orders. In recent years, it has obtained the title of the “National Sanitary City.”