Hangzhou Pictures

The pictures shown below are from around West Lake, Leifeng Pagoda and Lingyin Temple.

Check out other pictures from:

Beijing
Xi’an
Tianjin
Datong
Inner Mongolia
Ninghai&Putuoshan
Huangshan
Shanghai

Hangzhou – Ling Yin Temple

A few minutes from Hangzhou’s city center lies Lingyin Temple. The temple is one of the top sites to see in Hangzhou, but there are many things to see in the surrounding area as well.

The temple sits at the base of a limestone mountain, and both the temple and surrounding area provide some great images because of their rich history. The scenery surrounding the temple is beautiful, since it is surrounded by green hills, waterfalls, and caves. The Buddhist temple is one of the largest complexes I have seen in China, and one can spend a lot of time climbing up the hills from building to building, admiring the scenery along the way.

A river runs right next to Lingyin Temple, splashing over rocks and flowing under bridges as it winds through the surrounding foliage. Beside the river sits a section of caves, which house over 300 statues carved into the stone. These statues remain from the 10th to 14th centuries, and are still admired by experts today.

One of the girls I met on the train ride to Ningbo happens to live in Hangzhou, and we had agreed to meet for lunch. She only speaks Chinese, so we had a few problems with communication, but in the end everything worked out. We were a little late, and the restaurant we had planned on going to closed about five minutes before we arrived. We eventually found a place to eat, although this was more difficult than you might expect since it appears that almost every restaurant in Hangzhou closes at 2pm. The meal was very good, and we ate the best tasting chicken I may have ever had.

Only being able to communicate in Chinese dramatically sharpens my Chinese skills, and I really enjoyed our lunch. I needed the practice since the remainder of the trip would be without any resources and only my knowledge of the Chinese language to arrange everything.

Hangzhou is a city that is quickly growing, and the average income level there is rapidly rising. This is evidenced by the appearance of the city, and it is quite common as you drive down the street to see luxury car dealers, such as Ferrari, Lamborghini, and Porsche among many others. Luxury malls are also abundant in the area, and every name brand you can imagine can be purchased in the city. Looking at the city of Hangzhou provided me with a glimpse into China’s bright future, where the income level is much higher than it is today and many more cities resemble Hangzhou.

We left on a bus that evening, with good memories of our visit to Hangzhou and excitement for our next stop, Huangshan.