Hangzhou Haze

---

---

The start of "Scenic China Tour with Christina". Shanghai to Hangzhou to Huangshan to Guilin to Yangshuo to Shanghai.

We started out to Hangzhou on Sunday and took the train from Shanghai. The fast train only takes 1 hour 30 minutes, departing from Shanghai South Station (44 rmb per person). I wish I took a photo of the train station. It's quite pretty and new.

We got to Hangzhou and I guess a few trains arrived at once and the station was packed. The entire wide walkway was filled and we could hardly get down the steps from the platform. It was nuts. We waited in the taxi queue and when we got in, the taxi driver was totally bumping Chinese hip-hop music. I laughed as I told CL we were in the Hangzhou party taxi. The driver immediately turned off the music when we got in, but I was still laughing. The driver asked us why we looked so happy and I told him that I liked his music. He gladly turned it back on (loud)! The driver was funny and told us that he is happy while driving and listening to his CD. Then he kind of pulls over in front of a hotel - and he says that his car ran out of gas! Umm... ? It was so bizarre... sure enough, he couldn't start his car and there was no gas. I thought to myself, "How can a taxi driver run out of gas?" Anyway, we hopped onto another taxi and were on our merry way to the Overseas Hangzhou Hotel.

We got to the hotel and checked in. Before I booked the room, I made sure the hotel could arrange bus tickets to Huangshan for us. However, I got there, and one person told me that the day's deadline passed, and another person said that they don't buy tickets on Sunday. Anyway, I was thoroughly annoyed because I got wrong information and I didn't clearly ask the exact details of their ticket service. I continued to try to lecture the hotel lady (in Chinese) about how they need to tell people that if someone specifically calls in advance to ask. Argh!

So CL and I didn't get coffee in the morning. Thank goodness she's addicted too so she understood the need to FIND COFFEE! We found a C.Strait's cafe behind the hotel and got overpriced, but satisfying ice coffee.

With our caffeine fix, we were finally able to see Hangzhou and the West Lake. We rented bikes (5 rmb an hour) and rode around. Hangzhou was hazy and the lake was nice, but didn't quite live up to the "Hangzhou is heaven on earth" saying. The willow trees where really beautiful and overall the ride around the lake was relaxing and nice. We ate lunch and had a local specialty (dongpu pork) and then went on a hunt to buy bus tickets to Huangshan. After asking a bunch of people and riding around, we finally found the bus ticket office. We got tickets that departed Hangzhou at 9:50 am. 88 rmb per person.

We continued our ride along the Lake and over and around the Causeway. It was crowded, but still very peaceful and serene. I wish the weather was better.

At night we slathered on bug spray and watched a free wannabe Bellagio fountain show on the Lake, and headed to a noodle restaurant for dinner. I ordered the "house special noodles" and it had eel on it, which looked like little fishies with no heads. I couldn't eat them so I picked them all off. After dinner we walked around the night market and treated myself to a Haagen Daz ice cream! 😊

---

Photos

Hangzhou
West Lake

Hangzhou
West Lake

Hangzhou
West Lake - Causeway

Hangzhou
Pretty willow trees