The Chinese call this river the Changjiang, whichmeans Long River. It's the longest river in China at 3,915 miles, and the third longest in the world after the Nile and the Amazon. The word Yangtze is a corruption of a pronounciation of Changjiang. The Yangtze is likened to a dragon, both in its shape and its temperament.
Shanghai is the head, entering the gorges is called entering the mouth of the dragon.
For centuries an important navigation channel of the Chinese empire, it has now been eclipsed by the railroads. It was a difficult river, as is described in our section on pulling the boats through the gorges . The gorge is incredibly hot then. Summer temperatures run up to 104 degrees and steamy humid as well.