Meili Town

Meili Town (梅李镇) is one of the well-known water towns in southern region of lower reaches of Yangtze River. Because Meili Town is located along the river, it was battered frequently by tidal waves and flood disasters. It is said that the locals would like to build a solemn pagoda, asking for blessings from the Heaven, so the 22-meter-tall Jusha Pagoda (聚沙塔) was built in the Song Dynasty. It is the symbol of Meili, and it is also a witness of the town's long history – it passed through good and hard times. Almost a thousand years have gone, the pagoda is having deep traces of the past although time passes fast like a flying rocket. Furthermore, Yueheqiao Bridge (月河桥, Moon River Bridge) is still so crowded with walking pedestrians, the ancient wells still flowing clean and crystal-clear water, and the old and frugal atmosphere can still be felt throughout the streets and lanes in Meili Town.

Today Jusha Park (聚沙园) is the tourism and cultural center in downtown Meili. In the early hours of the morning, in the forest of pretty flowers and flimsy fog, majestic pavilions and beautiful kiosks are hidden seen. The bucolic fragrance of land in Yangtze's lower reaches poetically wafts in the morning mist. Sun rises and birds sing. Locals have gotten up and do exercise in the park. If one is walking there, one will feel like walking in a scenic picture. The masterwork of exquisite rockeries, which look like peaks made by the Mother Nature, a clear stream is flowing below the falling willows and the lovely fish are swimming freely.