Advertisement
Published: June 15th 2010
Edit Blog Post
Hangzhou
We fly into Shanghai and are met with a guide that was previously arranged to take us from there to Hangzhou by train. of course our plane was delayed an hour and a half and when we land, we learned we have to drive about 45 minutes to board a train that leaves in 30 minutes...needless to say, we were running through the airport, boarded a taxi that drove extremtley fast and we made the train as it was starting to roll down the tracks .
Hangzhou is known for its beautiful scenery especially its west lake. Our guide took us in a boat across the lake to see all the temples that had been built along the edges. It was misty out and the lake had a majestic fog that emitted the look similar to something you would see in a traditional chinese painting. I got the feeling that many of the people visiting Hangzhou had seen very few Americans because they were staring at mom and I the whole time we were there . One little girl who was probably about 3 or 4 kept staring
171
black corn at me on the boat and our guide translated that she wanted to get a picture with me. So I put her on my lap and about half the boat starting snapping photos of the two of us. She was really cute and attached herself to me for the rest of the boat ride. I couldn't understand a word of what she said, but luckily our translator was extremely useful and told us she wanted to know why we looked different and had different color hair.
After the boat ride, we walked through the park that surrounds the lake which really was one of the most beautiful parks I've ever seen. We tried some corn on the cob that they sell off the streets that has a black color instead of the traditional yellow, it didn't have much taste. Right next to the park is one of the oldest temples in the area. It houses a huge stone mountain with over 380 carvings included one of a famous fat laughing buddha symbolizing good luck and happiness to the people. This popular image has been replicated many times, but this is one of the first stone carvings of the buddha.
At this temple, mom and I learned alot about our chinese astrology . The astrology and the idea of yin and yang are central themes in this country and everything balances out.
We quickly grabbed lunch where mom and I struggled with the chopsticks...it took us twice as long to eat. We learned that tea is a crucial part of the Chinese diet and so we went to visit a tea farm. It really was interesting to learn about how the tea leaves are grown, picked, and made into the finished product. The tea farm is a part of a village that has been around for a long time and no new families can move into the village, it is only generation to generation. We got to taste some of the most natural green tea that China has to offer: the leaves are in the bottom of a glass and hot water is poured over the leaves. As it is cooling we were taught to let the steam go into our eyes to improve our eyesite. Once we tasted it, we both
thought it tasted just like hot water, but apparently it full of antioxidants and destroys free radicals which cause premature aging. We wished we had liked it more, but I think we are sticking with our processed earl gray...we both need more sugar and flavor in our tea.
Later that night we took a train back to Shanghai where we stay for a couple of days.
Advertisement
Tot: 0.081s; Tpl: 0.01s; cc: 11; qc: 46; dbt: 0.0461s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb