Most people have heard of the Great Wall of China, but not many foreigners know about the Grand Canal. This man-made waterway—known in China as DaYunhe —is 1,700 kilometers long and some parts of it are more than 2,000 years old. It 1the north of China with Hangzhou, a city in the southern part of the country. It's the longest man-made waterway in the world.
It was built as a2to transport grain from the rich agricultural land in China's south to cities in the north. In fact, it's not one canal, but a system of canals and rivers linked3. It's still an important part of the transport system in China. Thousands of boats use it every day to transport grain and many other types of cargo.
Now the Chinese government is doing new work on the Grand Canal. It is making parts of it4, so bigger ships can use it. The canal will also help to move water. There is a lot of 5in the south of China, but not (as much) in the north. The canal will carry millions of liters of water from the south to the north.
The Grand Canal is much6than the Great Wall, and not very many tourists visit(it). But it's possible to go on a cruise along some of the oldest parts of the canal. Passengers on these cruises see beautiful parts of China that other visitors don't see.
