Ch 30: China's #1 Lake

HangZhou is famous for one thing. The west lake (Xi Hu), and rightly so. The lake is beautiful and has been featured in chinese tales and poems for over a 1000 years. The Song Dynastly made their capital around the roughly 3k by 3k body of water. What's strikes me about the site are two things. One, it's very well maintained and the grounds around it are scenic yet not crowded. Secondly, the water of the lake is very high (almost at ground level with the shore). This is unusual for lakes as my experience goes and makes the water that much closer to someone on the shore. If I was inclined to write poetry I would have (but at last I am not).

We stayed at the Mingtown Youth Hostel on the east end (another great place to stay and meet up with other travelors). Sunsets on the lake are an awesome site. residents and visitors alike line up on the east shore to photograph the sun as it sets on the western hills casting multi-colored beams of light on the waters of the lake. It was a picture perfect experience.