Anyway, I haven't been travelling around much so nothing to write about...until I went to CHINA!! Yes...I finally made it to China in Sept. 2014(well part of it at least =P)
In our 6 days guided tour, we covered HANGZHOU, SUZHOU, WUXI & SHANGHAI. We had to pre-book our English guide as none of us spoke any Mandarin (except my hubby) You can pretty much say it was a private tour for our group of 10pax as the other party that was suppose to join us in China did not make it....so we had the whole bus to ourselves...Yayyyy!!
Our 1st glimpse of Hangzhou from the air
HANGZHOUDay 1 ~ 1st stop West Lake Scenic Area. West Lake (XiHu in Chinese) is a man made freshwater lake with just an average depth of about 7 feet. West Lake is a main attraction in Hangzhou. The lake & it's surrounding has all the elements of a traditional chinese garden but on a grand scale. Lovely crafted gardens & lush greenery greeted us as we strolled along well laden paths & tiny bridges towards the famed West Lake for our cruise, stopping by Red Carp Pond to feed the hundreds of fishes. The cruise took us around the main lake & our local guide brought to our attention a most famous Pagoda called Leifeng Pagoda located on a hill along the south of West Lake. This pagoda became famous because of the popular folk tale "The Legend of the White Snake" a touching love story about a girl who changed into a snake.
Entrance to West Lake
Red Carp Pond
Lifeng Pagoda
Group photo on the cruise boat
Dinner at West Lake
Our 1st meal in Huangzhou
After dinner at West lake we were treated to Hangzhou Night Of West Lake Show an indoor stage show which features on China's folklore and myths of Hangzhou. A lovely performance which was narrated in Mandarin.
It has been a tiring yet exciting 1st day in Hangzhou. We checked into Hangzhou Pujing Garden Hotel for a night before seeing more of Hangzhou tomorrow before leaving for Suzhou.
Hangzhou Pujing Garden Hotel
Day 2 ~ Good Morning from Hangzhou!!! Woke up all well rested & ready for another day discovering Hangzhou.
China is famous of their various kinds of tea. Hangzhou is the home of the renowned Longjing Tea or better known as Dragon well Tea. Meijiawu Tea Village is situated on the west of West Lake, a famous stop over for tourists to learn about tea culture in China. Tea produced in Meijiawu Village is among the best varieties of West Lake dragon tea.
From left : Tea flowers, tea seeds, oil from tea seeds, firing process
Leaves are handpicked from the fields and roasted right away, preventing the natural oxidation process as well as fermentation. Placed in a traditional wide, wok-like pan in a process called "firing," the delicate leaves are heated to a very high temperature before drying. When steeped in hot water, Dragon Well tea produces a yellow-green color, and features a subtle, smooth flavor. The tea is said to aid digestion and offers an array of other wellness and health benefits.
Tea Hostess explaining the process of tea making & the benefits of Longjing Tea
Our last stop in Hangzhou is the site of Nansong Guanyao or better known as Southern Song Dynasty Guan Klin Museum. This is the first museum in China devoted to pottery & porcelain which is built over & around the remains of the Jiaotanxia Guan Klins. These klins produce high quality imperial porcelain during the Southern Song Dynasty.
Group photo with our Hangzhou tour guide Ms Holiday
SCENES AROUND HANGZHOU
Hangzhou Xiaoshan International Airport
Qiantang River ~ Hangzhou main water source
Hangzhou dishes
No comments:
Post a Comment