Hangzhou is a city with more than 2,200 years of history. It has been described as “the most splendid city in the world” by one of the greatest travelers of all times, Marco Polo. It is very authentic, but welcoming and international at the same time.
Hangzhou is a hometown of the famous Jack Ma. It is also the headquarters of Internet giant Alibaba and the Silicon Valley of China. It is probably the smartest city I have ever visited. You can pay for everything by scanning the code on your phone, or by scanning your face (if you don’t find it scary it is very convenient). At the same time, it is very traditional, incredibly proud of its history. It is a site of pilgrimage, full of temples thousands of years old. Legends and myths are passed down from generation to generation, tought in schools and kindergardens, celebrated in art and literarture.
This unique mix is the most evident in the downtown area. While the lush tea plantations and green hills spread in the north, west, and south of the West Lake, its eastern banks are occupied by urban downtown. The best way to experience it is by walking, of course.
You can start from anywhere between the Wulin Square (武林广场) in the north and the Wu Shan Scenic Area (吴山) in the south. Modern skyscrapers and luxurious shopping malls are built right next to the traditional one-story houses. Japanese, Korean, Italian, French, Arabic restaurants serve customers next to local food stalls. You can see the latest Hermès bags in the licensed store and pink plastic dolphin toys that plays music and make bubbles being sold at the rug on the floor. People you meet on the way may be wearing orange monks robe, traditional HanFu, anime costume or an Italian suit. You got my point. Just being there is incredibly fun! I used to sneak out of home at least once a month and take my middle daughter to one of the theaters in the downtown area. She loved it. I would not understand a word of what was being said at the stage, but that was perfectly fine, because after the performance I would strap her in the stroller and slowly navigate my way through downtown. I would walk all the way to the Qiantang River where we used to live. I remember these evenings as the best part of life in Hangzhou. Everywhere we went was fun, everything we tried was new, even after years of living there.
For those interested in shopping, famous international brands are sold in: Hangzhou Tower (杭州大厦), Kerry Centre（嘉里中心) and InTime Shopping Mall (印象城).
You may try this route as a start and them change it as you find fit:
1. Kerry Centre（嘉里中心)
2. Hubin Street (湖滨步行街)
3. Xihu Avenue (西湖大道),
4. Yan'an Road (延安路),
5. Gaoyin Street (高银街) and
6. Hefang Street (河坊街) (read more).
Explanation:
Light blue circles with stars mark some of the streets around Hangzhou Downtown.
Black circles with shopping bag mark shopping malls mentioned above.
I also added places where you can have lunch in the surrounding area,
or a coffee and a cake.
In case you find this confusing, open the drop-down by clicking the symbol in the top left corner and uncheck what you do not want to see.
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