Thank goodness for this wonderful town of Hangzhou to lift our spirits and moods about China – this has been a definite positive note to end on. After battling some sort of stomach ailment for the second time while being in China, I was ready for something/anything to be nice and easy here. Heavenly Hangzhou located just a 2 hour train ride from Shanghai fit just the bill.

This lakeside town, surrounded by sprawling mountains is gorgeous, and actually considered by many to be the ultimate paradise of China. I can certainly see why people flock to this area to find respite in the beauty and serenity of the lake and mountains. We too discovered this area to be a lovely get away from the chaotic hustle and bustle of most everywhere else we had experienced in the country.

Our first day here we rented bikes and rode around the entire perimeter of the lake, taking time to absorb all the sites. Even the drivers in this area seem to be a little more laid back, making the maneuvering of a bike along the like-side somewhat manageable, yet definitely scary at times.

We climbed, actually took an escalator and elevator to the top of Leifeng Pagoda, which looks out onto the entire West Lake of Hangzhou. What an amazing view! Our next stop were these little motor boats we noticed along the water, which we rented for a short bit and motored around the lake on. A stop at the local market led to Jason buying a leather belt, and our discovery of Dairy Queen in China – the green tea, chocolate chunk blizzard was delicious.

It’s sad to admit, but after my last really difficult episode of stomach “issues”, we’ve been sticking to as much “familiar” food as possible (aka – staying away from Chinese). I must say you never know what you’re going to get in the local dishes here – even if they specify one thing, there usually seems to be some sort of weird, unrecognizable something in the dish that is just too weird to eat. I never thought I’d be so grateful to Pizza Hut for some good meals lately!

Beyond the scenery here, and the easy access to Pizza Hut, the town is filled with “cute” boutique-like shops that seem to carry stuff other then junk. I think this is the only time I’ve used the word cute to describe anything in China, so that says a lot about how we’re feeling about this place.

We are off to Hong Kong tomorrow, which although technically part of China, we hear is worlds apart. For us, that is very good news!!!