(Photo: Xihu Lake)
I just got back from Hangzhou. Between the two of us I think we have over 3ooo photos... at least. Therefore it took me awhile to edit and re-size the choice ones! It was really fun even though we didn't get to go to all the places we wanted to. I had really wanted to go to the art academy in Hangzhou, oh well, next time!
We ended up going to Xihu lake (of course,) The Bamboo Hallway, Dragonwell and Green Tea fields and the Hu Xueyan Residence (which I found online, it was an awesome place! 胡雪岩, 上城区元宝街18号) The air was much more fresh than that of Shanghai, it was also gorgeous (65-75 degrees F) and sunny every day we were there which everyone says is very rare, Hangzhou is famous for its misty lake and mountains, which inspired many ancient Chinese poets and artists.
The food was also amazing, everything was cheap, very fresh and well cooked, Hangzhou's food is famous for being made with very few added spices so the natural flavors can really come through.
In the Bamboo Hallway we ended up climbing the mountain by accident, the signs in the Bamboo Hallway were not quite accurate, The sign said the "Temple of the God of Wealth" was up ahead. We kept going up and up and up for about an hour when we then saw a couple coming down the mountain and asked them "how much farther to the temple?" (in Chinese) they said "the stairs keep going up for about 2 more hours.... we give up" we gave up too...
The Bamboo Hallway.
Little did we know this was only the first bit of stairs...
The Bamboo Hallway entrance.
Green tea fields.
A peony in the park just off of Xihu lake.
Koi in the pound at the hu xueyan residence.
One of the gardens in the hu xueyan residence.
If you still want to see more of my Hangzhou pictures you can take a look at my flickr photo account, here is the link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/27292029@N02/sets/72157616738679172/
