Destination: Hangzhou, China

Hailed for its blend of nature and modern living, Hangzhou (杭州) isn’t a city to be missed while visiting central-east China. Its large, freshwater West Lake has inspired past artists and poets with its natural beauty, and it’s home to a booming Internet industry that has drawn plenty of prospective workers from other parts of the country to its city of over 10 million inhabitants. Hangzhou makes for a convenient trip from Shanghai, and it’s also the gateway to more natural wonders of inland China.

My family and I wrapped up a brief day in Shanghai to make our way over to Hangzhou. We left around midday, and we zoomed along the country roads to our destination. It took about two-and-a-half hours by car, being that there was a 177-kilometre distance to cover. There’s also the option of taking a high-speed train over, with a duration of merely an hour– that said, tourists can easily make a day trip there and back from Shanghai, to explore a little more of China in that way.

We arrived in Hangzhou around mid-to-late afternoon. From there, we met up with a local guide who took us on various modes of transport– motorbike, boat, foot– all the while discussing the city’s history, which dates as far back as over a millennium ago. The tour went by in a blur, as its center was a dense concrete jungle and the information we received about its past was abundant. Needless to say, it was an overwhelming introduction to the city.

The history of Hangzhou is a long and rich one. It had been one of the Seven Ancient Capitals of China, particularly ruling the central and southern regions of the massive country. It’s also the terminus for the lengthy Grand Canal, which connects several rivers starting from the north in Beijing all the way down for almost 1800 miles, making it the longest artificially-made river in the world: its construction began as early as the 5th century and completed sometime in the 14th century (albeit with constant repairs following afterwards).

In addition, the city also has had strong political ties to other kingdoms in East Asia, as it served as a worldly center for scholars to engage with their neighbors from Japan, Korea, even Mongolia. Its recognition has also been seen by Italian explorer Marco Polo, who reportedly visited in the 13th century. Hangzhou was even occupied by Japanese troops during World War II, before returning to China after the war’s end. That said, the city is no stranger to foreign relations and rule, and perhaps that was what has made it a popular place for newcomers to settle, whether domestic or international.

Hangzhou is also home to renown artists and poets, with many of them coming from the Song Dynasty (960-1279 AD). Names like Dongpo, Lu You, and Xi Qiji have been immortalized as some of the finest poets in Chinese history, with their works being studied and replicated to this day. The city in modern times has also become a growing hub for the Internet industry, as e-commerce brands like Alibaba (the “Chinese Amazon,” as one can say) are headquartered here. It truly is a blend of the arts and technology, and it’s admirable that this city strikes a harmonious balance between the two.

That night, we were treated to a stage performance of traditional singing, dancing, and acrobats, all of which were means of honoring Hangzhou’s history and culture. The show was pretty entertaining, but what irked me were the spectators, many who were taking photos (when it was clearly told in the beginning that photography was prohibited) and standing up in their seats to get better shots, thus blocking our view of the stage. I can imagine what it must be like at a concert (which I haven’t gone to in years) when a mosh pit forms and you’re swept into it against your will. Not my cup of tea!

It was a matter of having dinner afterwards and heading to our hotel to rest at the end of the day. We were exhausted, considering we had spent the first half of our day in Shanghai, followed by a long ride to Hangzhou and a city tour. It was a full-steam kind of day, and we needed all the rest we could get to recharge and prep ourselves for another long day of sight-seeing the following morning.

Our first stop the next day was at the Leifeng Pagoda (雷峰塔), a symbolic monument of Hangzhou. The current structure is actually a replica of the original from the 10th-century, which burned down in 1924. Reconstruction began in 1999, and it was completed in 2002. During the process, archaeologists actually discovered a mausoleum underneath the pagoda’s base, where they unearthed plenty of artifacts, including the gold and silver-coated hair that apparently belonged to the Buddha himself.

We entered the Leifeng Pagoda and first spent some time touring the artifacts at the base. It was then a climb up its five stories to the top, where we got sublime views of the West Lake and its natural surroundings. West Lake (西湖) is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and it’s not a surprise that it is: the lake is large at over 1580 acres, with plenty of gardens, temples, and man-made islands along its surface. Its beauty has inspired poets and artists in the past, to write poems and paint landscapes that evoke its tranquil scenery, respectively.

The next and final stop was in the countryside, just outside of the city center. We specifically stopped at a tea plantation, where we learned about how tea leaves are cultivated and processed, as well as the health benefits of the hot beverage. It was really funny, though, when the tea guide/sales lady was really touting its advantages, claiming that tea can temporarily correct one’s eyesight if one puts their eyes in front of the steaming pot for about a minute to relax the cornea. I didn’t take her claim too seriously, as it’s kind of a Chinese cultural thing to claim health benefits without scientific backing (e.g. drinking hot water to circulate the system, and avoiding cold water). All the same, we purchased a bunch of tea as souvenirs to give as gifts to our relatives back home.

For lunch, we had a Hangzhou specialty dish: Dongpo pork belly (東坡肉). Named after the aforementioned poet Dongpo (who was also a gastronome), it’s a thick cut of pork belly with a 50/50 ratio of fat to meat that makes it extra oily, yet absolutely succulent and delicious. It’s ideal only to eat a single, small cut of it, so as not to exceed your daily fat intake, but it’s without a doubt the temptation for a second piece is overwhelming! It was a very-fulfilling meal, as we shortly left the city afterwards for our next destination.

Overall, it was a short, one-night stay in Hangzhou, but I found it to be a pleasant visit. There wasn’t too much packed into our tour, especially since we were on the road for most of the time to get from place to place. The views from the Leifeng Pagoda were the highlights of our time there, and it makes for the perfect stop whether you go for a day trip or a stop-through on the way to other parts of China.

Thanks for reading, and more adventures are coming soon!

— Rebecca