Hanging Around in Hangzhou

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Because we were only going to Hangzhou for 3 nights, we were able to pack everything we needed into our day packs, and gosh does that make travelling easy. Walking around the train station and generally trying to get around is made so much easier without a huge bulk on your back, as well as the day pack on the front.

Unfortunately our hopes of brighter weather in Hangzhou were quashed as the train we caught informed us that the outside temperature was 6 degrees, and stepping outside for a taxi very quickly informed us that it was raining. On the first night we tried to muster up the energy to visit the night markets, but in getting dinner we realised just how heavy the rain was, and decided instead to have a nice night in watching a movie which we discovered was free on the tv in our room.

The first full day we spent trying to find something called 'yellow dragon lake cave park' or something to that effect. At the front desk they wrote it out in chinese and told us what bus to catch. This system did not work. We arrived at the end of the bus line, and while according to the map we were rather close to the park it was impossible to get our bearings and none of locals had heard of whatever was written in chinese on our piece of paper. After a lot of wandering around, in the cold, and occassional rain, and I mean a lot (finding miscellaneous parks, libraries, alleyways and one stadium), we finally gave up. I copied out the street name in chinese that the park was located on (because no one seemed to have heard of that park), and we caught a taxi. So we finally made it. By this point a very bitterly cold wind was blowing. We ran into the park, had a very quick look, took a few photos on our self-dubbed bridge of enlightenment (a full state of enlightenment being the only compensation we thought was equal to the sufferings of that day), quickly ran out again, into a taxi to a hot meal and more movie watching.

The day after that we learnt from our mistakes and caught a taxi straight to where we needed to go, one of the biggest tourist sites in hangzhou (especially considering wandering around the west lake wasn't really an option in that weather), where there are old buddhist carvings in the rock. I was pleasantly surprised. It was one of those rare sort of sites that kind of gained character on a drizzly day, and wandering in the caves seeing these statues was certainly a lovely experience. They had traditional music playing in speakers hidden among plants, and i couldnt decide if this was a nice touch, or a tacky addition. The fact that we were supposed to pay extra (on top of what we'd already paid) to see the main attraction, a temple, was incredibly annoying, particularly as nowhere outside had mentioned that extra charge (and either had lonely planet, suggesting it was a new addition). We didnt pay. And again went back to the hostel. I was a bit run down from the day's adventures (still being sick) so had a nice long nap, while Lex went to check out some old market street which was apparently very good. My nap was undoubtedly better. That night again was typified by a warm meal and a movie or two, but it was good just to have some easy nights in, especially as the restaurant at our guesthouse wasnt made to make it easy to meet people.

The next day we left Hangzhou. It's a shame the weather had been so bad, because the streets and bridges around the lake I saw as we drove past looked really lovely, and it would have been nice to explore the place a bit more. But oh well, the carvings were nice and i pretended to reach enlightenment on a bridge. Not a complete waste of a few hours return train trip, and overall a rather enjoyable and relaxed experience.

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