Hangzhou - There is heaven above, Suzhou and Hangzhou below

"There is heaven above, Suzhou and Hangzhou below."

The capital of Zhejiang province, Hangzhou is famed for its West Lake. I saw it at night and I saw it in the day, and both were different sights to behold. In the morning it was misty and dreamlike, and you can see the islets in the middle of the lake, and the majestic towering pagodas. At night it was mysterious, and as I walked along the lake (damn long walk I must say) I was treated to another view that was captivating of white lotus flowers contrasting against the dark waters. Folk stories surround the West Lake, one of which was of the legend of Lady White Snake, the story is about the relationship between a scholar and a spirit of a snake which has taken the form of a beautiful woman. Lady White Snake met Xu Xian on the "broken bridge" in the rain and they fell in love with each other and an umbrella they used became the symbol of their love. Xu Xian falls in love with Lady White Snake but a monk intervenes and destroys and traps her underneath Leifeng Pagoda.The bridge was also the scene where they made up after a long series of ups and downs.

There is also a tomb of Su Xiaoxiao who was well known for her intellectual talent and great beauty. As a courtesan she pursued the values of love, beauty and humanity. There is a story that tells of her meeting a young scholar travelling in a state of dire poverty, hoping to reach the capital to sit the official examinations. She gave the scholar several nuggets of silver from her purse, but he never returned to her after completing the examinations. She did not wish to be a man's wife or mistress, preferring to share her beauty with the common people while showing a certain contempt for the wealthy. In her late teens, Su Xiaoxiao developed a terminal illness, during which she took the view that heaven was giving her the special opportunity to leave a legacy of beauty in her memory through her death at a young age. She died at 19 years of age and for more than a thousand years, her tomb was situated at the Xilin Bridge beside her beloved West Lake.

"Song of the West Tomb"
I ride in a decorated carriage,
My darling rides a blue-white horse.
Where should we tie the knot for our heart?
Under the Xiling pine and cypress.


We went on a riverboat cruise on the West Lake in torrential rain. Although it was raining and misty, it didn't hide the beauty of the lake. It felt as though I was in a dream, transported back to one of those dynasties back in the day.


The tree 2m high stone pagodas in the south of the island were construted in 1621 after the model of the original three pagodas built by Su Dongpo. There are five small round holes in each pagoda. When there is a bright full moon in the sky, and a candle is placed into each of the pagodas, you may see the candle light mingle with the moonlight. Thus it was named as “Three Pools Mirroring the Moon”.One can also see the pagodas on the back of 1 yuan note.

Lou Wai Lou was one of the most famous restaurants in Hangzhou, and we were able to try out the famous "West Lake sweet and sour Carp", very different from the normal sweet and sour stuff that we've tried back home. The owner of Lou Wai Lou was Hong Ruitang, a scholar who failed in the imperial examination. He and his wife moved from Shaoxing to Qiantang after the death of their parents, and lived at the bank of Xilin Bridge under Gu Mountain. They made a living by boating and fishing and had skills in cooking fresh fish and shrimp as they came from Shaoxing, a place flowing with fish and rice. When they noticed that there were no refreshment rooms along that West Lake area, they began to save money and opened a small-scale one-floor restaurant located between Yulou and Xilingyinse near Liuyi fountain. The fish was "interesting", a lot of vinegar and something else that I couldn't put my finger on it. Something weird about the restaurant was that the chairs were too low, one wonders why that is.