East Lake

East Lake, located on south bank of the Yangtze River and the east of Wuchang, is is the biggest lake in a city within China and one of the major tourist attractions in Wuhan. In 1982, this scenic area was listed as state-class major scenery researching zone.

The whole scenic area of East Lake spreads over 88.2 square kilometers including water area of 33 square kilometers, which is 5 times than the area of the West Lake in Hangzhou. The lake, with over 120 bends in the branch streams and 111.5 kilometers shoreline, was famed as "a lake with 99 bays". The surface of the lake looks vast, clean and bright. The scenery around the lake is lovely, including flowers and willow trees as well as pavilions and terraces. There are four major characters in this scenic area such as beautiful mountains and waters, abundant plants, strong conditions and customs of Chu and unique garden.

Because of abundant rainfall and sunshine as well as a humid climate, East Lake has rich botanical resources. There are 370 kinds of trees, 80 kinds of birds, and 390 kinds of flowers, of which plum blossom and lotus are most famous. Based on this, China's Plum Research Center and Lotus Research Center are headquartered here.

East Lake Park is divided into six scenic areas, namely Tingtao (wave-hearing), Moshan (millstone-shaped Hill), Luoyan (Diving Wild Goose), Baima (White Horse), Chuidi (Playing the Flute), and Luohong Hills adding additional beauty to the lake. Of which, Tingtao Pavilion and Moshan Hill are most famous.

Also in the area are Hubei Provincial Museum and residence of former Chinese leaders like Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai, Zhu De, etc.