Suzhou has been 'the Venice of the East' for 750 years since Marco Polo, who was a world-famous Italian tourist, traveled around China in Yuan Dynasty. Therefor, the water towns of Suzhou are must-see attractions.

Mudu ancient town/木渎古镇 is the nearest water town to the downtown of Suzhou. What's more, Mudu is well-known for its charming gardens and beautiful legend stories. 

As we all know, the King Wu/吴王 built ancient Suzhou in 514 B.C. and he also loved one pretty girl called Xishi/西施, who was sent by the Yue State to allure him. He indulged Xishi so that he ordered to build one palace for her on the top of the Lingyan Mountain/灵岩山 next to Mudu. There were so many woods gathering in the river in one time, which resulted in the clogged woods in water. Mudu was named after it originally, because they had the same Chinese pronuniciation.

The main attractions scatter along the Shantang street including the Yan Family's Garden/严家花园 well-known for Mr Yan Jiagan, who had been vice president of Taiwan, and the Hongyin Mountain Villa/虹饮山房, which was reported to be the place, where the emperor Qianlong lived, when he visited Suzhou.

One night culture show called the Past of Mudu/木渎往事 was launched on November 15, 2019, which performs twice each night in the Yan Family's Garden.