Hangzhou

We took almost one hour by train from Shanghai to go to Hangzhou. This city is famous for The city's West Lake, a UNESCO World Heritage site.

We wanted to go by bike around the lake but it wasn't a good idea. We had to make a citizen card (for 250 RMB) to take the public bikes.
We followed a chinese man to arrive at the West Lake but we discovered that we couldn't pass with the bike in the street just around the lake. What a pity!

We walked to admire the beauty and tranquility of that place.

Our first stop was the Baochu Pagoda. We left the bikes there and we walked for 30 minutes to get to the top of the mountain. It was really hot. But it was worth it. From there we saw an incredible view of the West Lake. It was a mix of modernity, culture, spirituality and nature.

After a few kilometers in the delirious traffic of Hangzhou we decided to abandon the bikes.

We took a taxi to go to our next stop: the Lingyin Temple.
It is a Buddhist temple of the Chan sect located north-west of Hangzhou. The temple's name is commonly literally translated as Temple of the Soul's Retreat. It is one of the largest and wealthiest Buddhist temples in China, and contains numerous pagodas and Buddhist grottoes.

This beautiful temple is immersed in a natural landscape and is rich of amazing statues and spirituality.

Our last stop was the tea village. We saw tea plantations at the sunset and we went in a tea house to try some Longjing tea, sometimes called by its literal translated name Dragon Well tea. It is a variety of pan-roasted green tea from the area of Longjing Village in Hangzhou. It is produced mostly by hand and renowned for its high quality, earning it the China Famous Tea title.

We also bought three small boxes for 400 RMB in total.Read more