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The Beautiful West Lake of Hangzhou

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If you want to visit China, West Lake in Hangzhou is a place you would not want to miss. There is a Chinese saying that goes, "Above there is heaven, below there are Suzhou and Hangzhou." This is not an exaggeration; Hangzhou is as beautiful as heaven. You have to visit Hangzhou to fathom its beauty. Marco Polo, the first westerner to visit Hangzhou in the 13th century, described Hangzhou as "without doubt the finest and most splendid city in the world." A famous poet of the Song Dynasty, Su Dongpo (960-1127), once compared the West Lake to Xizi (the most beautiful woman in ancient China) in his poem:

"Rippling waters shimmering on a sunny day;
Misty mountains shrouded in rain;
Plain or gaily decked out like Xizi;
West Lake is always alluring."

Ten Scenic Spots in West Lake (西湖十景)

There are ten scenic spots scattered in and around the West Lake, collectively known as the "Ten Scenes of West Lake". Here goes their names:
  1. Dawn on the Su Causeway in Spring (苏堤春晓)
  2. Curved Yard and Lotus Pool in Summer (曲苑风荷)
  3. Moon over the Peaceful Lake in Autumn (平湖秋月)
  4. Remnant Snow on the Bridge in Winter (断桥残雪)
  5. Leifeng Pagoda in the Sunset (雷峰夕照)
  6. Two Peaks Piercing the Clouds (双峰插云)
  7. Orioles Singing in the Willows (柳浪闻莺)
  8. Fish Viewing at the Flower Pond (花港观鱼)
  9. Three Ponds Mirroring the Moon (三潭映月)
  10. Evening Bell Ringing at the Nanping Hill (南屏晚钟)

Your Favorite Scenic Spot of West Lake

Have you have visited the Ten Scenes of West Lake? Vote for the ones you like best, the ones most memorable to you.

1

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Two Peaks Piercing the Clouds (双峰插云)

6 points

2

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Remnant Snow on the Bridge in Winter (断桥残雪)

3 points

3

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Leifeng Pagoda in the Sunset (雷峰夕照)

3 points

4

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Dawn on the Su Causeway in Spring (苏堤春晓)

2 points

5

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Orioles Singing in the Willows (柳浪闻莺)

2 points

6

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Fish Viewing at the Flower Pond (花港观鱼)

2 points

7

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Curved Yard and Lotus Pool in Summer (曲苑风荷)

1 point

8

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Moon over the Peaceful Lake in Autumn (平湖秋月)

1 point

9

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Three Ponds Mirroring the Moon (三潭映月)

1 point

10

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Evening Bell Ringing at the Nanping Hill (南屏晚钟)

1 point

Ten New Scenes of West Lake (西湖新十景)

In the year 1985, a group of 5 govermental bodies and organizations selected ten new scenic spots known collectively as the "Ten New Scenes of West Lake". Here are their names:
  1. Bamboo-Lined Path at Yunqi (云栖竹径)
  2. Sweet Osmanthus Rain at Manjuelong Village (满陇桂雨)
  3. Galloping Tiger Spring (虎跑梦泉)
  4. Inquiring about Tea at Dragon Well (龙井问茶)
  5. Creeks in Misty Forest (九溪烟树)
  6. Heavenly Wind over Wu Hill (吴山天风)
  7. Circular Green at Lord Ruan's Mound (阮墩环碧)
  8. Yellow Dragon Cave Dressed in Green (黄龙吐翠)
  9. Clouds Scurrying over Jade Emperor Hill (玉皇飞云)
  10. Precious Stone Hill Floating in Rosy Cloud (宝石流霞)

Beautiful Hangzhou Videos

A video is worth a thousand words. The videos below are a pleasure to watch, although some are in Chinese.

Hangzhou, China

Video of Hang Zhou, China

Hang Zhou,China
by elysexiao | video info

112 ratings | 52,385 views
curated content from YouTube

Hangzhou in 5 Minutes

Tour Around Hangzhou

五分钟游杭州 Hangzhou in 5 minutes
by yipwh | video info

8 ratings | 6,509 views
curated content from YouTube

Chinese Musical Journey - Hangzhou

A Cultural Tour with Traditional Chinese Music

[Naxos 2.110553] CHINESE MUSICAL JOURNEY (A) - HANGZHOU
by naxosvideos | video info

18 ratings | 7,296 views
curated content from YouTube

Legend of Madam White Snake

Any description about Hangzhou won't be complete without a mention of the Legend of Madam White Snake (白蛇传). This is a romance story between a young scholar called XuXuan (许仙) and a beautiful woman, Bai SuZhen (白素贞), who is actually a white snake which has taken on human form. A monk called FaHai (法海) intervenes in order to save the scholar and locks the white snake in the LeiFeng Pagoda.

In the early '90s, I watched a Taiwanese TV series called New Legend of Madame White Snake (新白娘子传奇). It was such a touching story. Beautiful actress, beautiful landscape, touching music... If you just watched it once, you'll remember it for the rest of your life. By the way, you'll want to watch it over and over again because it's so moving. Here are some pictures from the series:




Interesting Facts

  • The most popular sight in Hangzhou is West Lake ;-)
  • The city flower of Hangzhou is Sweet Osmanthus (桂花).
  • Hangzhou is best known for its silk and Longjing Tea (龙井茶).
  • Hangzhou was the capital of the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279 AD) and was known as Lin'an (臨安).
  • Yue Fei (岳飞), a famous Chinese patriot and national hero of the Southern Song Dynasty was buried near West Lake.
  • Su Dongpo (苏东坡), a famous poet and governer of the Song Dynasty invented the Dongpo Pork (东坡肉) which is a famous Chinese cuisine available on the menu of every restaurant in Hangzhou.
  • Wu Song (武松), a hero famous for slaying a tiger with his bare hands was buried in Hangzhou. His tomb, which was rebuilt in 2004 is just on the side of West Lake.
  • A mausoleum actually existed below the Leifeng Pagoda (雷锋塔). This was corroborated using a radar. When the mausoleum was excavated on the 11th of March, 2001, a 35cm-high gilded silver pagoda which contains the Buddha's hair, was found. However, there was no trace of Madame White Snake :(
  • The Hangzhou Bay Bridge (杭州湾大桥), a 36-kilometre long bridge linking Jiaxing in the north to Ningbo's Cixi county in the south, is the longest sea-crossing bridge in the world. The bridge is an S-shaped cable-stayed bridge with six expressway lanes in both directions. It was opened to public on May 2, 2008.

Books/DVDs about Hangzhou

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West Lake/Hangzhou Related Links

Finally, some links you might be interested in:
Marco Polo: The Glories Of Kinsay [Hangchow]
Hangzhou as described by Marco Polo.
Hangzhou - China Travel Guide
Unbiased Hangzhou travel guide and review.
Vacation Time in China - Artipot
An interesting story of a Canadian guy who visited Hangzhou.
Hangzhou - Wikitravel
Hangzhou travel guide from Wikitravel.
Madame White Snake - Wikipedia
Learn more about the Legend of the White Snake.

Feedback

I'd love to hear your thoughts about Hangzhou or West Lake or anything related to them. So don't hesitate to drop a line or two here.

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BaiNiangZi

Hi, I'm Bai Niang Zi. I would like to introduce you to the beautiful West Lake situated in the middle of the city of Hangzhou.

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