The Shichahai area in Xicheng district might be the liveliest part of Beijingit is thronged with sightseeing tourists and relaxed locals all year round.

Located in the northwest part of downtown Beijing, it is a famous scenic area that includes three lakes: Qianhai,�1�3 or Front Sea; Houhai, or Back Sea; and Xihai, or Western Sea, as well as places of scenic beauty, and old-style hutong alleys and siheyuan courtyards.

This is also a place to experience the lives of Beijing people, where tourists can join the ranks of locals who enjoy boating, playing chess, dancing, singing and even skating in winter — traditions that go back centuries.

Indeed, this area has been one of liveliest places of Beijing for more than 700 years, even before Beijing became the capital of the nation with a unified south and north.

What brought prosperity to this area was the Grand Canal. The project was built for thousands of years to assist transportation in China.

Representing the world's highest achievement in hydraulic engineering long before the industrial revolution, the Grand Canal was added to the World Heritage List in 2014.

The ancient project is called the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal today, as it is running from Beijing to Hangzhou, Zhejiang province.

The earliest Grand Canal section is called Hangou, which was built during the late Spring and Autumn Period (770-476 BC). Large-scale construction took place in the Sui (581-618) and Tang (618-907) dynasties, forming the backbone of the empires' inland communication system, supplying grain to feed the population.

According to Zhang Jin, an expert who was engaged in the Grand Canal's World Heritage application, said that the canal in the Sui and Tang dynasties was the most extensive in history.

"When construction of the Grand Canal was completed in the Sui Dynasty, it was a wide-covering waterway of more than 3,000 kilometers, linking Hangzhou in the south, Luoyang in the west and Youzhou (today's Beijing) in the north. Through the watercourse of the Yellow River, it even extended to Xi'an," Zhang said.

The canal built during the Sui Dynasty was still in use in Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127). Its function as a transportation route was disrupted when the northern part of China was invaded by the army of the Jin Dynasty (1115-1234) in the late Northern Song Dynasty.

So why did Shichahai become the northern hub of the canal more than 150 years later?

Linking national capitals

Shan Jixiang, chairman of the China Cultural Relics Academy, explained the secret behind this.

"In history, whether the canal is called the Sui and Tang Grand Canal, or Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, it was built to transport supplies to the national capital," Shan said. "Over the nearly one and a half millennium, every capital of a dynasty having northern and southern China in its control had a canal to link the national capital with southern China."

At the southeastern end of Shichahai stands a huge stone stele, its Chinese character inscription reads "Jishuitan Harbor of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal". Shichahai is also called Jishuitan by locals and tourists.

This stone stele reminds people this popular tourist destination was a busy shipping hub in the northern end of the Grand Canal.

On a hill at the northwest of the lakes is a temple in memory of the person who had planned to build the canal and harbor, and brought prosperity to this area. Called Huitong Temple, it worships Guo Shoujing, a scientist and official during the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368).

Guo might be one of the most prominent figures in the Yuan Dynasty because of his versatility in multiple fields like sciences, engineering and political administration.

Records displayed at the temple show that Guo had achievements in sectors like hydraulics, calendric science and mathematics.

But in Beijing, Guo is much respected for his efforts in building the canal. Old Beijing people often say that "Beijing was a city brought by the water" because of the role the Grand Canal played in the construction of the city.

When Guo's teacher, Liu Binzhong, the chief designer for the construction of Beijing, considered plans for building the city as a national capital, Guo highlighted the importance of a waterway system for transporting huge numbers of construction materials and large components. Thus he proposed to build a canal to connect the country's south and north.

As he planned, water sources in Beijing's western and northern mountains were diverted to Shichahai, from which a grand canal was built, flowing all the way to Hangzhou.

Vital harbor for supplies

With the canal in place, huge numbers of building materials were transported to Beijing for the building of the then-largest city in the world. When the construction of Beijing was complete, the canal became a vital channel to ship supplies, like grain, textiles and other daily necessities for the local population.

During the early Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), when Beijing was rebuilt, the Shichahai area was included in the inner city, which made it inaccessible to big boats. The new Grand Canal harbor was relocated to the east of the city. No more a shipping destination, Shichahai evolved into a tourist attraction.

However, plenty of relics related to the canal remain in the area, like watercourses, water gates and bridges.

It is said that Guo designed 24 gates for the Tonghui River — the Beijing section of the Grand Canal. One is the Chengqing Upper Gate in the east of the Shichahai area. Today, the water gate can be easily identified as it is a part of the landmark Wanning Bridge.

Shan of the China Cultural Relics Academy said what the canal left in Xicheng goes far beyond Shichahai and the waterway's vicinity.

He said: "Upon the completion of the Grand Canal, Shichahai as the northernmost shipping destination of the waterway, immediately became a gathering place of supplies, people, commerce and culture.

"It received shipments of building materials for the construction of the royal palaces and the entire city as a national capital, and food to feed a huge population inside the city.

"The area also got the delivery of daily goods like textiles, tea and porcelain, which were then distributed to shops in the south of Xicheng, leading to the forming of the centuries-old Qianmen commercial district.

"The cultural products from the south, like the 'four treasures of the study' — writing brushes, paper, ink sticks and inkstones — arrived here and led to the establishment of Liulichang culture street."

"More people came to Beijing through this destination to seek their careers as officials or opportunities for business. They brought with them cultures of their hometowns, leaving numerous guildhalls, opera stages and local eateries throughout Xicheng and the entire city," Shan added.

Shan said he is glad to see the Grand Canal become a member of the World Cultural Heritage family. Xicheng should take this opportunity to map out new efforts for the protection and development of heritage sites in the area and its vicinity, he added.

"Shichahai is a huge public park and an important part of Beijing's cultural landscape," Shan said. "And its status as the northern destination of the Grand Canal renders it a special role in Beijing's cultural and tourism development."

"The protection and development of Shichahai should be integrated with its neighboring places of cultural interest, like historical streets, hutong alleys and old residences of nobles and celebrities, giving people a deep understanding of the history and culture of Xicheng and Beijing," said Shan.