Shanghai Expat: April 2010: Hangzhou Day 1

Getting to Hangzhou was easy. Unlike for Suzhou, we left from the South Shanghai Railway station, which is much more pleasant than the regular one. This station is above ground, with a sleek and modern open design much like an airport. Again, our express train averaged 170 kilometers per hour (105 mph). Like Suzhou, we traveled along canals, occasionally crossed them too, but the views on this trip were nicer.

Between the overview of Hangzhou and my pictures, the day is pretty well described. Di Yin also took a lot of pictures. The latter link goes to the first picture from this trip, starting the instant we left the door of our apartment. When you see a picture of me buying a pumpkin cake as a late-night snack (picture #83), you're done with her pictures for the day. I'll link to the next day's pictures in the following post.

We arrived in Hangzhou, headed straight for our hotel, the West Lake Golden Plaza, to drop our stuff off. The hotel room was nice. The coolest thing: the battery powered clock on the nightstand that lights up when you lift it, making it easy to read at night. We headed out, hunting for food and eventually finding it, and in the process exploring some of Hangzhou's historic and tourist streets. It was a nice day, with no need for a jacket. Having seen a good part of town, we made it to the lake and the greenery surrounding it. There I went camera crazy, yet, in retrospect, I wish I took even more pictures. It's just that pretty.

Having failed at finding a filling lunch, we had an early dinner at Zhiweiguan Restaurant, one of Hangzhou's most famous and oldest restaurants. With four stories, it's a big place. As with everything else this day, the details are in the pictures.