Two years ago, A Dutch young man named Thomas came to Hangzhou from Beijing to start his own business. From the perspective of an art lover, Beijing and Hangzhou, the north and south ends of the Grand Canal respectively, are worth exploring. Walking along the Grand Canal, Thomas usually visits the Fuyi Warehouse, an art exhibition space that is famous in local Hangzhou. Thomas said that this is also a place he likes so much. Its wooden architecture of more than 120 years ago is perfectly integrated with the contemporary art and the history of the whole city.

From September 21 to 23, The Grand Canal Cultural Belt Beijing Hangzhou Dialogue is being held in Hangzhou. The event encompasses an opening ceremony with a grand forum, 8 Grand Canal-themed activities, as well as a few welcoming events that are to be organized by Beijing City, Zhejiang Province, and its capital city - Hangzhou.

Thomas is an entrepreneur and also a big fan of Chinese history. He said that in the 17th century, a Dutchman named John Neuhoff saw the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal in China and recorded his surprise in his travelogue “First Visit to China”. Nowadays, more than 300 years since then, he comes to Hangzhou again, the southern end of the Grand Canal, to understand the history of the Grand Canal and Hangzhou in detail. He is still surprised by the close relationship between the development of the city and the Grand Canal.

From Gongchen Bridge, which marks the past of Hangzhou, to Xiaohe Street, the most lively pier in the past, and again to Fuyi Warehouse known as the granary of the world, Thomas has a deep exploration of the connection between Hangzhou and the Grand Canal.

To his surprise, the Zhejiang section of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, the oldest and longest man-made hydraulic and transportation system in the world, is still open to navigation. Hundreds of cargo ships can be seen on the canal, which seems to remind people of its busy scenes during ancient times. Thomas once read the description about the canal in Marco Polo's book: "The reason why such a great canal is commendable is that it not only connects the several large rivers in China but more importantly, it benefits the cities along its coast."

Thomas said that the navigation opening-up of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal has had a profound impact on the cities along its coast, which has made Hangzhou an important commercial city from an unknown little town in history. More than 900 years ago, the Southern Song Dynasty established its capital in Hangzhou. One of the main reasons behind this is its prosperous economy and the Grand Canal, which has also made Hangzhou transform from a commercial city to a metropolis.

The “Discover Hangzhou” series of short videos, part of the Hangzhou Stories told by Foreigners Program jointly undertaken by the Office of Cyberspace Affairs Commission of Hangzhou and “In Zhejiang” has been launched on www.inzhejiang.com. The 8 episodes will tell you the fascinating stories of Hangzhou from a fresh perspective. 

Producer: Zhang Yuyi, Zhou Yi, Xue Yi

Video: Shu Lei, Duan Ruan

Text & Subtitles: Ye Ke