Hangzhou and Shanghai

I made another trip to Shanghai last weekend. Since I had to fly down for my b-school interview, I figured I'd use the opportunity to visit a friend in Hangzhou, which is only an hour away from Shanghai. Hangzhou is often said to be one of the prettiest cities in China, with a massive lake, West Lake, smack in the center of the city. Cherry blossom season (which unfortunately is still another couple of weeks away) is supposed to be amazing here, as the flower-covered trees dot the landscape around the lake.

Jiyin and Andy took me to a local Hangzhou restaurant, where we had a delicious meal, before we headed out to West Lake. We walked along the banks of one section of the lake, before stopping by the former lakefront villa of Mao (now a hotel) for afternoon tea. I sampled the local dragon well green tea as well as a bunch of tasty snacks including hazelnuts, dried grape tomatoes and dried bamboo. All were delicious. Despite the hazy clouds obscuring the view, the lake was still really tranquil and beautiful.

I had my first home-cooked local Chinese meal at Jiyin's home that night. Jiyin's mom cooked an amazing meal with over 10 dishes, including spring rolls, crab, fish, chicken and some type of glutinous cake. I also met her college roommates.

We went back to the West Lake again the next day and walked along the main pedestrian walkway that cut across the lake. We met up with one of Jiyin's roommates and took a relaxing boatride around the lake. We saw the islands in the middle of the lake and the three stone pagodas in the middle of the lake that reflect the moon during the full moon (some how, the holes in the pagodas reflect in such a way that it looks like there are 32 moons, 10 each from the pagodas, the moon itself, and the moon's reflection).

I rushed back to Shanghai in time to grab dinner with some friends. We had some yummy Indian food and the night ended pretty early because a bunch of them got kittens recently, and like good parents - they went home to feed their cats. I met Qin's new kitten, Taka (after the Japanese actor Takashiro something), who was incredibly shy and skittish. But Qin treats him so well that we all hope it'll stop being scared and shy soon.

Post-interview the following morning, Qin and I had lunch before hitting up Yu Yuan for gift ideas for the Harvard Global Series Conference in Shanghai. Even on a Tuesday the place was busy. We saw some artisans making some pretty cool things - like tin can turned into art and names twisted out of wire. I got one of the twisted things for Anna (who is visiting me in Beijing!).

Despite the fact that I love visiting Shanghai, I rushed back to Beijing, cutting my trip short, so I could see Anna. I went straight to the Peninsula - it's been more than a year since I've seen her and I am super excited she is visiting (thanks to her boyfriend who is here on business). We had wine and chocolates and caught up for a bit.