Precious Belt Bridge , one of the most famous and grandiose adornments of the Grand Canal, is located a few kilometers to the southeast of the city, at the intersection of the Grand Canal and Lake Tantai. Built between 816 and 819, during the Tang Dynasty, this engineering feat has 53 arches and measures 317 meters long and 4.1 meters wide. (The Grand Canal was formerly a main transportation route for eastern China, but for the most part this function has been replaced with newer and faster modes of transportation.)