More than 60,000 tourists flocked to the Eighth Liyang Tea Festival in Liyang, a city nearby the Tianmu Lake in East China's Jiangsu Province, where the 15th Asian Water Skiing Championships were also being held.

Liyang is renowned for producing Chinese green teas such as Nanshan Shoumei and Longtan Qingfeng. The tea culture exhibition included a trade fair.

Tourists were also encouraged to visit local tea gardens during the festival.

The Tianmu Lake region produces 2,500 tons of tea a year, a major source of income in the area.

The clean water, fresh air and vast bamboo forest around the Tianmu Lake have helped to make it a popular tourist attraction in East China.

(China Daily 05/23/2001)