West Lake

The main tourist attraction of Hangzhou is West Lake. This is a lake a few km across that was constructed in the 8th century. Hangzhou is now a large city of 6 million people, but they have managed to keep most of the development away from the lake, so it remains green and peaceful. We spent the day walking and boating around the lake, and visiting the Leifeng Tower.


Sweeping the Lake


"Viewing Fish and Flowers" Park


Turtle Pond
Leifeng Tower is actually a modern steel building replacing an old one that collapsed in 1924. There is a Chinese love story about a serpent turning into princess associated with the tower, and also a museum of things found in the rubble of the collapsed tower, including an ancient silver box containing, it is said, a hair from Buddha, so it is an interesting place to visit. There are views of the city and lake from the top of the tower, although it was still rather hazy when we were there.


Leifeng Tower: Modern Steel over Crumbled Ruins


View of West Lake from Leifeng Tower


Leifeng Tower and Boats
After a lunch of the local Dragon Well tea and a buffet of tasty snacks in a tea house we were paddled around the lake for a couple of hours, enjoying the views of the city and the green park and mountains, and watching the numerous young couples having their wedding photos taken by the lake. By then it had cleared into a nice sunny afternoon.


Paddling Around the Lake


Hangzhou City from West Lake