*Getting there: High speed train, as well as normal trains from other major cities

*Getting around: Taxi is the easiest option from the train station. Metro does not serve all localities. Bus network also exist but multiple changes might be required depending on origin and destination. bicycle sharing system with many docking stations around tourist destinations as well as city center exist (location of these stations are not well documented).

*WiFi: Actually we did not attempt to connect to local city hot-spots

*Money: Visa/MasterCard accepted in very few establishments. Mobile payment is the preferred mode of payment. Cash otherwise.

*Language: English not widely spoken, so be prepared with some standard Chinese phrases. Even better write it down and point-shouldn’t be so hard with all the translation apps.

*See: Take a stroll along the vast west lake and its many causeways (aim for weekdays for relatively less tourist crowd). Visit the many towers and temples around the lake. Experience sunset on the east side of west lake Let the tranquility, simplicity and harmony of the peony garden seep in. enjoy the musical fountain show every evening at 6pm. Visit the tea museum. Visit the mountain area around Lingyin temple and take in the idols of Buddhism towering on in the rock faces above. Stroll amongst the ever peaceful premises of the temple and spare some time for contemplation. Visit the old city part of Hangzhou and savor the street food (find the green bean pancake if you can).

*Tips: Get the tourist card from the tourist information which serves as a contact-less payment card for the buses and a free pass for the bicycle sharing system (free for the first one hour). The card cost about 600yuans with a deposit fee of 300yuans. Try fresh local breakfast (normally runs out around 09:30) - soy milk, steamed buns, noodles, or a choice of many other dishes. Also try local family made steamed dumplings.

Marco Polo on his travels in the 13th century, described the city as the most beautiful and magnificent on his travels. After the ordeal in Beijing, the feeling was very similar for us. Arriving night in Hangzhou, nothing is needed more than a warm shower, a nice meal and a good sleep. As simple as that.

The west lake area is very beautiful and has inspired many kings,poets and artists alike. The Su causeway was built by the famous poet Su and is one amongst a series of 6 causeways along the lake. This draws a large number of tourist to the area. It is not really possible to avoid the tourist crowds, the best bet for a peaceful stroll along the causeway is during the weekdays. Some areas like the peony gardens are relatively less crowded. It also offers a chance to experience Chinese landscaping bringing into harmony the various elements in a garden. West lake covers a very large area of about 7sqkm. so some parts are more crowded than others. To watch the sunset over the lake we headed to the east side of the lake. The infrastructure around the lake is very well developed maybe in part due to Hangzhou being the host for the G20 in 2016. There are ample opportunities to sit down and take in the scenery, have a snack, drink a cup of coffee or tea, watch the locals performing the ‘square dance’. After the sunset we walk around the lake and find an area of unusually high concentration of people (even for China). It was the daily gathering to watch the musical fountain show of 15 mins. It is a nice sight, if you do not mind being cramped in a large crowd it is worth the experience.

The lingyin temple was built by an Indian monk during the Jin and Song dynasty. Entrance fee must be paid to get into the mountain reserve and to the temple as well. It is possible to cycle all the way upto the entrance of the Lingyin temple reserve using the bike sharing system. Upon entering the reserve, a pathway to the left leads to the statues carved out of limestone rock faces paying tributes to Buddha, Bodhisattva, mythological characters and the eminent personalities in the Song dynasty court. Walking amongst them gives you the feeling like they are towering and watching over you. Maybe the sense that pilgrims actually wanted walking into a place of pilgrimage. The entire site is covered with many trees along with pristine flowing stream and many ponds adds to the tranquility of the reserve. The site is now a UNESCO world heritage site, but some of the statues seem to have been deliberately defaced. The information boards do not provide any information for the same. Nonetheless, it is a very unfortunate that such acts of vandalism occurred.

The tea museum in Hangzhou is accessible by the tourist bus. There is even a city sharing bike station to drop off the bikes. The entry to the tea museum is free. The museum documents the history of tea originating in China and spreading to the rest of the world. Elaborating on the evolution of the tea culture, different tea types and tea ceremonies. There is also a multimedia presentation on traditional tea preparation detailing everything from preparing the tea kettle, tea glasses, amount of tea, water temperature and soaking time. The tea culture is so refined that every type of tea has its own optimal tea set made from varying materials. Enough to say you will never look at tea the same way again. Once you are there, make sure to try out the green tea hotel close by, amazing food!

Last but not least, the street food in old Hangzhou is a must! There are plenty of vegetarian options. The basic idea of the whole food adventure is to navigate through the crowd and not get bogged down by the chaos, treat the whole market as your dining place and pick and choose an unforgettable multi-course meal. Our most memorable food was a green bean crepe with a crunchy core. We had never had this ever in the parts of China we had traveled through. It even came with its own story from the chef, apparently the crunchy core represents bad spirits and people take a particular pleasure in deep frying them. Of course there are many other delicious items like Vegetable deep fried rolls, Sweet sour noodle, Fresh tofu marinated in soya sauce, Grilled aubergine filled with glass noodle and vegetable, the list goes on and the food street is open!