Water

West Lake in Hangzhou

(China)
Updated: 2010-09-01 14:50

Other attractions

Yue Fei Memorial Hall

Yue-Wang Temple, the tomb and memorial hall to Yue Fei, an ancient Chinese general famous for his loyalty.

Lingyin Temple, a Buddhist monastery and surrounding hills and gardens. Long Jing tea farms, an area renowned for the quality of its tea leaves.

Jingci Temple

Galloping Tiger Spring, a spring famous for its mineral water.

Tomb of Su Xiao Xiao, a famous courtesan.

Tomb of Wu Song, a famous fictional hero from the classic Chinese literary work “Water Margin”.

Influences

The West Lake is said to be the incarnation of Xi Shi, one of the Four Beauties of ancient China. As a result, since ancient times, the West Lake has been associated with a large number of romantic poets, philosophers, and national heroes and heroines, including:

Eastern Jin Dynasty philosopher Ge Hong, who practiced Taoism in the Ge Mountain, and wrote his great philosophical work: Bao Pu Zhi.

Tang Dynasty poet Luo Binwang lived in Lingyin Temple

Tang Dynasty poet-governor Bai Juyi built the first causeway, which is the Bai Causeway.

Song Dynasty poet-governor Su Dongpo, dredged the lake and built the Su Causeway. He also invented a special recipe for preparing pork: the Dongpo Pork. Dongpo Pork is on the menu of every restaurant in Hangzhou

Song Dynasty national hero Yue Fei was buried near the West Lake

The great Ming Dynasty essayist Zhang Dai, wrote a number great essays about Xī Hú in Reminiscence and Dream of Tao'an, as well as a whole book about the lake: Search for Xī Hú in Dreams.