West Lake－Pride of Hangzhou
By admin on 2014-12-16

The West Lake Scenic Area covers an area of 60 square kilometers, out of which the West Lake occupies 5.6 square kilometers with 3.3 kilometers from north to south and 2.8 kilometers from west to east. Originally no more than a shallow inlet, this section of the Qiantong River was dredged and dammed in the eighth century to form the lake that exists today.The lake has a circumference of 15 kilometers. It is surrounded by hills on tree sides and faces the downtown area on one side. The charming lake is a pearl that lay by the city. There are two brocade-ribbon-like causeways inside the lake, namely Bai Causeway and Su causeway, and they divide the lake into five parts. Three man-made islands named Three Pools Mirroring the moon, Mid-lake Pavilion and Mr. Ruan Yuan's Mount stand elegantly in the outer lake. The "Ten West Lake views"and the "ten new West Lake view"add much more beauty to the West Lake.

Leifeng Tower in distance

The Spring Dawn Round the Su Causeway tops the list of the ten best known sights in Hangzhou. The causeway was built during the Northern Song Dynasty by Su Dongpo, a great scholar in ancient time. Stretching around 2.8 kilometers long, it is spanned by six bridges and heavily sheltered by green vegetation. When spring comes, the whole causeway is blanketed by peach blossoms and weeping willows, creating an especially charming scene.

The stone arched bridge is at the eastern end of the Bai Causeway. The legendary tale of "Lady White Snake" took place here. After a snowfall, the snow on the sunny side melts first while snow on the shaded side still lingers. Looked from afar, the bridge appears to be broken, thus the name. This is a popular stop for many tourists.

West Lake covered with snow

Viewing Fish in the Flowering Harbor is located at the southern end of the Su Causeway. A clean stream leads from Huajia Hill to the West Lake through here, so it named as "Flowery Harbor" Viewing Fish at Flowery Harbor, now has been made into a 22 hectares park with many varieties of trees and flowers, featuring a peony garden which blooms in April and a goldfish pond which is the famous site for viewing fish.

The spot of Autumn Moon Over the Calm Lake is located on western end of Bai Causeway. This teahouse with its cement terrace bounded on three sides by water, become one of the traditional places to view the West Lake, especially on the mid-Autumn night when the moon is full and bright, so it named as "Autumn Moon on Calm Lake". The scenic spot covers an area of 6000m2. Various garden plants and flowers intermingle pavilions and platforms.

Dragon boats float on the surface.

The three stone pagodas, first built over 800 years ago,2 meters in height, are the main scenic spot calling "Three Pools Mirroring the Moon". To the west of the isle stand three ball-shaped hollow stone pagodas with five round holes around. At the night of the Mid-Autumn festival, when the moon shines full and bright in the sky, a candle is lit inside each of the pagoda, the light and the moon cast their reflections through the holes on the water, hence the name.

We hope that this introduction to the delights of the area surrounding the West Lake will tempt you to visit them for yourself. You can be assured that the splendid and diverse landscape will remain long in your memory.