A gala opens this year's Yangtze River Cultural Festival, held since 2004 in Zhangjiagang, Jiangsu province.[Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

One of best known poems mentioning the Yangtze River is the piece by Li Zhiyi, who lived in the 11th and 12th centuries which goes, "I live near the river's source, and you live where the river ends. I think of you every day and night, but can't see you in person. We, however, drink from the same stream."

From west to east, the Yangtze River runs across dozen provinces and autonomous regions in the country, illuminating the first glares of Chinese civilization and nurturing people to cultivate developed economies and cultures along the way.

A gala opens this year's Yangtze River Cultural Festival, held since 2004 in Zhangjiagang, Jiangsu province.[Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

To connect the various cultures thriving along the Yangtze since ancient times, Zhangjiagang, a city at the waterway's mouth, in Jiangsu province, began in 2004 a cultural festival to celebrate the vigor and diversity of the extensive regions by the river.

This year's festival opened on Sept 21 with a gala of traditional arts and shows reflecting social changes in the regions. A series of events including exhibitions, fairs, film screening and forums will introduce people to the similarities and differences of the regions. And this year has for the first time designated Qinghai province, which the Yangtze originated from, as the guest province.

A gala opens this year's Yangtze River Cultural Festival, held since 2004 in Zhangjiagang, Jiangsu province.[Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

A gala opens this year's Yangtze River Cultural Festival, held since 2004 in Zhangjiagang, Jiangsu province.[Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]