Up to Hangzhou - April 23rd-24th 2010

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April 23rd 2010: Hangzhou and East Side of West Lake


Page 2 of 3.
Click on images below to enlarge:
Near the West Lake
This entrance to the set of parks that surround the West Lake. Something about this pictures strikes me as artistic. I think it's that the way the people are posed in this colonnade of trees feels artificial, as if this is a promotion shot for a deep, thoughtful play or movie.
Ibid, a 360 degree panoramic movie showing the sculpted grounds surrounding the entrance.
Bright greenery along a stream.
This tree is bigger than the island on which it's growing.
This entrance to the set of parks that surround the West Lake. Something about this pictures strikes me as artistic. I think it's that the way the people are posed in this colonnade of trees feels artificial, as if this is a promotion shot for a deep, thoughtful play or movie.
Ibid, a 360 degree panoramic movie showing the sculpted grounds surrounding the entrance.
Bright greenery along a stream.
This tree is bigger than the island on which it's growing.
A typical path (yes, all the paths were this pretty) in one of the parks surrounding the West Lake. I think I must tag this as excellent, if only so I remember to look at this picture again and relive the memories.
Our first glimpse of the West Lake.
More landscaped grounds.
I stopped on a bridge over a stream just before reaching the lake to take this 360 degree panoramic movie. (I kept really wanting to record the feeling of walking through this area.)
A typical path (yes, all the paths were this pretty) in one of the parks surrounding the West Lake. I think I must tag this as excellent, if only so I remember to look at this picture again and relive the memories.
Our first glimpse of the West Lake.
More landscaped grounds.
I stopped on a bridge over a stream just before reaching the lake to take this 360 degree panoramic movie. (I kept really wanting to record the feeling of walking through this area.)
Another fertile island.
Leifeng Pagoda, perhaps, as seen looking across the corner of the lake.
Yet another 360 degree panoramic movie, this one focusing on, in turn, the boats one can charter on the lake, the lake itself, and the manicured grounds in this part of the park.
A typical (yes, typical) willow-drenched path along the lake. What an excellent place to walk.
Another fertile island.
Leifeng Pagoda, perhaps, as seen looking across the corner of the lake.
Yet another 360 degree panoramic movie, this one focusing on, in turn, the boats one can charter on the lake, the lake itself, and the manicured grounds in this part of the park.
A typical (yes, typical) willow-drenched path along the lake. What an excellent place to walk.
A gazebo on the lake.
A panorama of Hangzhou's skyline as seen above the West Lake. This is the north-east side of the lake.
Yet more lake-side willows.
A plaza. Note the camouflaged speakers in the trees (decorated like large birds' nests). Also notice yet another lawn in the background.
A gazebo on the lake.
A panorama of Hangzhou's skyline as seen above the West Lake. This is the north-east side of the lake.
Yet more lake-side willows.
A plaza. Note the camouflaged speakers in the trees (decorated like large birds' nests). Also notice yet another lawn in the background.
A series of gates, another of the West Lake's area's main entrances.
A statue of Qian Liu. Artificially brightened.
A pair of cubist tai chi statues. Excellent fun.
We walked across this railing-less bridge. (No, it wasn't scary.)
A series of gates, another of the West Lake's area's main entrances.
A statue of Qian Liu.
Artificially brightened.
A pair of cubist tai chi statues. Excellent fun.
We walked across this railing-less bridge. (No, it wasn't scary.)
An ox statue in the water.
A portal to Hangzhou's buildings.
One of many nice places for tea.
A truly arched bridge.
An ox statue in the water.
A portal to Hangzhou's buildings.
One of many nice places for tea.
A truly arched bridge.
Xihutiandi, an upscale restaurant complex near the lake. Notice the two buildings through the trees on the left and right: two of the complex's many restaurants. I imagine dining in one of these glass-walled establishments feels like dining in a forest.
A zig-zag bridge.
A plaza that borders the lake, along with a gazebo above the lake.
I took this picture so I could caption it: "the lakeside promenade goes on and on." Really, it's visibly nice until your eye can't make out the details in the distance.
Xihutiandi, an upscale restaurant complex near the lake. Notice the two buildings through the trees on the left and right: two of the complex's many restaurants. I imagine dining in one of these glass-walled establishments feels like dining in a forest.
A zig-zag bridge.
A plaza that borders the lake, along with a gazebo above the lake.
I took this picture so I could caption it: "the lakeside promenade goes on and on." Really, it's visibly nice until your eye can't make out the details in the distance.
A different way of representing the thought: the lakeside promenade goes on and on.
Hanging flowers.
A large relief map of Hangzhou as of 1892 (though this relief is less than a decade old). The lake is on the left (west) side. Dotted lines are roads. Notice all canals and bridges. (There are waterways and bridges that run through town. There are many more bridges and streams near the West Lake not shown in this picture.)
Zoom-in to read the explanation of the map and its history.
A different way of representing the thought: the lakeside promenade goes on and on.
Hanging flowers.
A large relief map of Hangzhou as of 1892 (though this relief is less than a decade old). The lake is on the left (west) side. Dotted lines are roads. Notice all canals and bridges. (There are waterways and bridges that run through town. There are many more bridges and streams near the West Lake not shown in this picture.)
Zoom-in to read the explanation of the map and its history.
Hundreds of reliefs, many unique, were embedded in the paths surrounding the lake. I took a picture of one so I could write this comment.
Approaching sunset over the West Lake. Excellent.
Hundreds of reliefs, many unique, were embedded in the paths surrounding the lake. I took a picture of one so I could write this comment.
Approaching sunset over the West Lake. Excellent.
Dinner at Zhiweiguan Restaurant
Dongpo pork. Decent I suppose. It was more like bbq shredded pork than something like Jishi's pork. This was drier--quite a surprise because dongpo pork is cooked with wine-and less greasy and more, well, naturally shredding. The sauce probably leached out both the flavor and the liquids. (Perhaps that's why I compared this dish to something that normally comes with bbq sauce.) This picture, by the way, is an excellent example of the Chinese love for meat with fat.
Longjing shrimp. Rather like Shanghai's shrimp, but, eating them with the tea leaves changes and improves them a lot, giving them an entirely different character.
Mrs. Song's fish chowder. A fresh-tasting soup of ham, fish, shiitake mushrooms, some type of plant, and chicken broth.
The menu. We had#1 longjing shrimp: long4 jing3 xia3 ren2. (Longjing, a.k.a. dragon well, is a famous type of tea grown in Hangzhou.)#3 dongpo pork: dong1 po1 rou4. (Dongpo is a famous poet's name.)#10 song's sister-in-law fish soup: song4 sao3 yu2 geng1. Interesting that these famous Hangzhou dishes all include proper nouns, either references to people or places. Perhaps it's a reflection of Hangzhou's literati heritage -- one could expect people to catch references.
Dongpo pork. Decent I suppose. It was more like bbq shredded pork than something like Jishi's pork. This was drier--quite a surprise because dongpo pork is cooked with wine-and less greasy and more, well, naturally shredding. The sauce probably leached out both the flavor and the liquids. (Perhaps that's why I compared this dish to something that normally comes with bbq sauce.)
This picture, by the way, is an excellent example of the Chinese love for meat with fat.
Longjing shrimp. Rather like Shanghai's shrimp, but, eating them with the tea leaves changes and improves them a lot, giving them an entirely different character.
Mrs. Song's fish chowder. A fresh-tasting soup of ham, fish, shiitake mushrooms, some type of plant, and chicken broth.
The menu. We had
  • #1 longjing shrimp: long4 jing3 xia3 ren2. (Longjing, a.k.a. dragon well, is a famous type of tea grown in Hangzhou.)
  • #3 dongpo pork: dong1 po1 rou4. (Dongpo is a famous poet's name.)
  • #10 song's sister-in-law fish soup: song4 sao3 yu2 geng1.
Interesting that these famous Hangzhou dishes all include proper nouns, either references to people or places. Perhaps it's a reflection of Hangzhou's literati heritage -- one could expect people to catch references.