Hangzhou, China

Our next major city to conquer in China was Hangzhou. It is located just a little over a hundred miles southwest of Shanghai, and is home to over 8 million people....making it roughly the size of New York City. It is mind boggling how China has so many large cities in close proximity on its eastern shore. What is even more impressive is that the city of Hangzhou is some 2,200 years old. Needless to say, there is a lot of rich culture to be absorbed.

We took an evening boat cruise on the famous West Lake, renowned for its natural beauty.

boats on the West Lake

mountains on the horizon of the West Lake

a pagoda perched on the shore of the West Lake

Hangzhou and its surrounding areas house many magnificent parks and natural areas that I am sure serve as inspiration for many artists.

We were lucky enough to spot a wild peacock in one of the parks.

the sun setting over the mountains near the West Lake

Later that night, we headed into the city to catch some of the night life. We attended a show that included gymnasts, contortionists, trapeze, martial arts, and other feats of wonder.

the sure bent over backwards to entertain us :)

swinging from a rope with one hand

The next morning, we continued our tours with a visit to a tea farm.

rows of tea bushes

a worker dries the tea leaves by hand in this heated mantle

After the tour of the tea farm with plenty of samples, we hit the road towards our next city...Suzhou (the topic of my next blog....stay tuned).