There is a huge freshwater lake in Wuxi named Lake Taihu. It is well known for its beautiful freshwater pearls that come in many colors and are prized around the world. The boys had fun learning about how they grow and they were allowed to take out some of the tiny ones they use for creams and other products but not jewelry.
We arrived at Hangzhou in the afternoon, it is very green and lush such a drastic change from Beijing! Marco Polo called Hangzhou “the finest, most splendid city in the world….where so many pleasures may be found that one fancies oneself to be in Paradise”. It was the capital in the 12th century and it is on the back of their 1 yuan bill. The center of it all is West Lake, it is exactly what you see in lakeside pictures of China. It’s very calm and surrounded on three sides by verdant green mountains covered in tea trees.
All around the lake there are temples, pagodas, gardens and arched bridges, it is so peaceful. We took a boat ride for about a half an hour and glided past all the sights and many other boats.
The weather was a little misty but not raining. While I would have rather seen it on a clear day, it gave the lake an ethereal feel that added to the magic. Hangzhou is also the area where many locals go to honeymoon and many go just for a weekend getaway. Hangzhou gets a lot of rain which makes it so pretty.
