East Lake Scenic Area

Sprawling in the eastern suburbs of Wuhan, East Lake occupies an area of87 square kilometers, 33 of which are water surface. The lake's winding shorehas earned it the name "Ninety-Nine Bays." The southern part of the lake has more than 30 hills of different sizes while its northern section is noted for such lakeside buildings as Tingtao Xuan (Listen-to-the-Waves Chamber), Shuiyun Xiang (Water-and-Cloud Villa),Canglang Ting (Pavilion of Glistening Water), Binhu Hualang (Lakeside Art Gallery), Changtian Lou (Tower of Boundless Sky) and the Lu Xun Square. Also in the northern section is Xingyin Ge (Poem-Reciting Pavilion) standing on an isle between Hefeng (Breeze Swept Lotus) and Luoyu (Falling Feathers) Bridges. It is dedicated to the memory of the great patriotic poet QuYuan (c. 340-278 BC), who, according to legend, recited poems here when he visited Wuchang.