West Lake, May 21st

Anyday of the week no matter what the weather, West Lake seems to be a mob scene. Bustling with tourists, there are also tons of locals who gather to socialize, think, eat snacks, and sing! This day was my first time at West Lake and I took a long hour to walk alone and get a real experience.

Old and young, everyone crowds around a small speaker with one microphone as a live band plays Mandarin hits. Locals sing along softly and the star with the microphone always seems so happy to have an afternoon of attention. I can't help but take pictures of the babies in Hangzhou... they are all so adorable and always wearing the funkiest outfits. Actually this is one of the few times I saw a little one in a stroller. A lot of the local kids in the neighborhood near my campus walk hand-in-hand with their parents, get piggy back rides or carried. One of the differences is the lack of clothing. A lot of the little boys have crotchless trousers and some don't have diapers. If they need to go, they simply go on a plant or even in Xihu (which I witnessed on this same day..and I made a mental note not to swim in Xihu).

it is a sight though. the lake is so massive and to me seems so flat. as if i could step from the slate sidewalks onto the surface and walk straight across. We rented a boat for an hour or so with a sweet boatman. The experience was like that of my kayak experience from last summer. Super thrilling and fun in theory...slightly terrorizing once in the boat and in the middle of water. Perhaps I did not remember my fear of deep water. The wind was pretty strong near the middle of the lake and for a while I feared we would flip. The boatman was friendly, we all attempted to chat with him in Putonghua and he offered me some of his beijiu, very strong alcohol from a large plastic bottle. I declined but we ended up singing "Tian Mi Mi" to each other (thanks Xiong laoshi!!) which was so much fun. My voice is awful but it was so neat to sing to a boatman..on Xihu..in Putonghua.

Xihu (West Lake) is quite a tourist attraction so many kiosks surround the lake selling "silk" garments, parasals, jewelry, bright toys, and fans. Close up, the shops feel pretty garish, but now looking at pictures, I like the staurated, eye straining colors. I also saw the Crayola shades in bicycles on a side street later that day:

Color is another difference in Hangzhou. People are not confined to color. Now I know historically, yellow is the color of the Emperor, but in daily life people do not seem to care about colors. Most noticably in clothing. Men often wear purple tee-shirts. It is actually pretty popular color for men right now. Even in bicycles, I noticed some boys with purple, green, orange, and pink bicycles. At home if someone had a bright color garment or bike they might be talked about mockingly or negatively. It is again, fresh, to see a lack of caring in color. All colors seem acceptable, even white, which historically represents death since it was worn to funerals (and in some rural areas, still is).

These chair & table sets struck me. I really liked the chair shape and the worn look. To think of all the people who rested in them next to Xihu with friends and family. All the rain they sat in and sun that bleached and eventually turned coverings yellow.