My last day in Shanghai, I took the high-speed rail to Hangzhou, famous for its West Lake region.
Hangzhou - West Lake
It was not ideal weather for taking a boat ride, so I circumnavigated the lake by foot.
Hangzhou - West Lake
I had an easy enough time catching a taxi from the train station to the lake, but on the way back it started raining, and there were no cabs. Some young Hangzhou-ians on their way to the station helped me catch a bus and even guided me to the right gate. I didn’t speak Chinese and they didn’t speak English, but somehow we communicated.
Hangzhou - West Lake
Hangzhou was a much-needed change of pace, and the kindness of the people there was a breath of fresh air after a week in the big city.
Hangzhou - West Lake
My China Year 
Thanks for this little video. Love the music you choose for your video pieces. It’s like a short walk in the park when I don’t have time for a walk in the park! I’m glad the people in Hangzhou were nice to you. Believe it or not; that happened to me when I was a stranger with my two little kids in Chicago. The people spoke my language; but they were all black, and me and my kids were the only white people on a full bus. Two elderly ladies got off with me to help me transfer to the right bus!
None of my trips to China lasted more than 5 days and I very rarely had a chance to go anywhere I wanted to go. As a result I was accosted by a lot of the “Lady, Sex” people and saw almost exclusively the seedier side of industrial China. I’m happy to see that your trip has also shown you some of the beauty that I heard existed in China. Both of the videos that Lisa has shown me are absolutely magical!