6 April 25-26, 2015 April 25-26, 2015 7 2015 Suzhou Suzhou special World Table Tennis Championships CHINA DAILY Industrial park sets higher standards SCENIC SITES AROUND SUZHOU’S LAKES Excellent facilities and location make it a top draw for business and culture, Fu Chao reports.

uzhou Industrial Park, one of the most Suzhou Culture and Expo Centre makes full important and successful cooperation use of these local resources and advantages projects between China and Singapore, through the combination of the two centres, Shas become an impressive new venue of endeavoring to develop the nation’s demonstra- international standards after 20 years of devel- tion area for business travel in the industrial opment. park. The scenic landscapes and historic relics The industrial park’s Jinji Lake is making along Jinli Lake are no longer silent fossils of his- headlines these days because the 2015 World tory. They are now alive with art performances, Table Tennis Championships will come to the community activities and exhibitions. city’s International Expo Centre, which is located Suzhou Culture and Expo Centre also has a The Gate of the Orient, a 301.8-meter-tall skyscraper in Suzhou Industrial Park. along the lake. range of projects underway in sectors including The Jinji Lake Scenic Area is the only 5A scenic hospitality, entertainment and tourism, aiming area in China that focuses on business tourism. to o0 er more various services. The 5A ranking is the highest for scenic areas. The commercial plaza, iStation, which opened The lake and its scenic area are a renowned on March 27, is the city’s new shopping, dining tourism spot in the country. In the past 20 years, and entertainment destination. the industrial park has built a variety of business According to Suzhou Culture and Expo Cen- and cultural facilities around the lake, making tre, construction of the city international confer- the lakeside a hub for business, culture and ence centre and a Novotel hotel will be complete tourism. by October. The expo centre’s exhibition and The Suzhou International Expo Centre and conference facilities will be improved to reach a the Suzhou Culture and Arts Centre, operated level that can serve international events such as by the Suzhou Culture and Expo Centre, play a APEC and the World Economic Forum. signifi cant role in the city’s emerging meetings, Suzhou Culture and Expo Centre launched incentives, conferences and events industry, also a program in 2014 to o0 er better information known as MICE. services. The entire international expo centre The two centres have improved facilities and has high-speed Wi-Fi. Exhibitors will receive services to be fully ready for the coming champi- updated information on the venue and event onships. The international expo centre, opened schedule during the expo. The centre will also in 2004, is the major player of the city’s MICE launch a program that can record and analyze industry. The centre has hosted more than 1,000 the number of visitors to each booth as well as events in the past 11 years. the time they have spent there. According to the international expo centre, the China’s MICE industry is booming in major largest advantage the centre has to appeal to the cities such as Shanghai and Beijing. As a close Yangcheng Lake is famous for its crabs. championships is its variety. neighbor of Shanghai, Suzhou can share some The international expo centre o0 ers a range business opportunities with Shanghai. of competition venues, as well as a media centre, The World Table Tennis Championships this meeting rooms and other facilities, creating “one year offers Suzhou Culture and Expo Centre stop” services in a single cluster. an opportunity to further promote itself on the The culture and arts centre will be the venue global stage. of the opening ceremony on Saturday. During the championships, the centre will present a Contact the writer at fuchao@chinadaily. range of performances and cultural activities. com.cn Visitors and athletes from around the world can enjoy a ballet, a musical, a movie, or an art exhibition after watching a competition. In 2012, Suzhou Culture and Expo Centre combined the expo centre and arts centre under its operation, an innovative move to explore new Shandong Yellow ways to develop the MICE industry in Suzhou. Sea Industry insiders said that the combination 200 km

brings more possibilities and business opportu- CHINA DAILY nities to the industry. The city’s booming culture Jiangsu and art scene will be a large attraction for its MICE industry, and MICE will also bring more opportunities to the tourism industry. Nanjing Suzhou has long been renowned for its abun- Anhui Suzhou Shanghai dant cultural and historic heritage. Its classical gardens, ancient streets, canal, Kunqu Opera A church by the side of Dushu Lake in Suzhou. and other traditional folk arts create a unique Zhejiang appeal for the city’s MICE industry. A night view of Jinji Lake in Suzhou Industrial Park. PHOTO BY GU YIMING / FOR CHINA DAILY Lakes add to park’s unique appeal to business investors

By FU CHAO Laboratory, the cradle of major breakthroughs [email protected] in molecular biology, has partnered with the Industrial Park to set up a conference center In addition to Jinji Lake, two other famous near Dushu Lake. The program has initiated a lakes can be found in Suzhou Industrial Park, series of international scientifi c conferences and adding to the park’s unique appeal. courses at the lake area since 2010, later becom- Dushu Lake and the Yangcheng Lake have ing the Cold Spring Harbor Asia Conferences. A picturesque natural landscapes and play dif- total of 12 Nobel laureates have given speeches Night life is also colorful here in Suzhou. ferent roles in the functioning of the industrial at the conference. What is more impressive is park. that four of the scholars received Nobel Prizes after attending the conference. Dushu Lake The pronunciation of Dushu is similar to the Students enjoy a moment of reading in Suzhou Yangcheng Lake Mandarin word for “reading”. Coincidentally, Industrial Park. While Dushu Lake is where people read and the lakeside area is renowned for its education learn, Yangcheng Lake is where they can relax and innovation industry. and spend their vacations. Dushu Lake Library, which opened in 2005, biological and the nanotechnology park, as well Every autumn, gourmets fl ock to Yangcheng is the center for most cultural activities in the as many other high-tech industry incubators. Lake to taste its famous Yangcheng Lake crab. lake area. The lake area just set up an association of The extensive transportation system, cluster In 2012, the library renovated and developed universities earlier this month. Twenty-three of accommodation facilities, and famous tour- its 15 community branches in the industrial universities that have branches or institutions ism spots such as Chongyuan Temple and his- park. in the area — including Renmin University of toric site Caoxie Mountain attract many tourists According to the industrial park, 25 national China, Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University and to the lake area every year. and foreign institutes have o= ces in the Dushu Soochow University — have joined the asso- During the crab harvest season, the local Lake area. Among them are the University ciation. The association will o0 er students and market o0 ers the best Yangcheng Lake crabs of Science and Technology of China, Renmin teachers integrated study resources. in the country, and visitors can also enjoy the University of China, Nanjing University, the Uni- As one of the regular programs at the lake authentic local cuisine at farm stays. versity of California, Berkeley, and the National area, the Lakeside Forum features scholars and There is also a bicycle trail along the lake University of Singapore. industry insiders from around the world to where people can rent a bicycle and go for a Top academic institutes include the Suzhou discuss major topics in culture, business and ride. Institute of Nano-tech and Nano-bionics, jointly politics. The monthly event has been running The Yangcheng Lake area has now positioned founded in March 2006 by the Chinese Acad- for nine years and is one of the most popular itself as a destination for leisure activities and emy of Sciences and the local government, the cultural activities in the lake area. is already a leading player in this sector among The ferris wheel near Jinji Lake is another tourist attraction. National University Science Park, BioBay, a The world-renowned Cold Spring Harbor the surrounding regions. Ligong Causeway (with pagoda), which crosses Jinji Lake is 1,400 meters long. PHOTOS PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY Chongyuan Temple by Yangcheng Lake has a history of more than 1,000 years. ILLUSTRATIONS BY JIA RU