Seal School: Day 27
Sunday 27 November 2011
Hangzhou Sightseeing
I sleep in a bit and skip breakfast. It’s a beautiful day for sightseeing so I walk along the edge of the West Lake to Leifeng Pagoda ($6.34 entrance) and then across the street, behind the yellow painted walls, to the Jingci Chan Buddhist Temple ($1.58 entrance). I don’t take any pictures inside the temple because I feel it may be disrespectful. From the gift shop I buy a gourd amulet, a small wood Guanyin amulet, and a wooden bead bracelet ($17.44 total). As I leave the temple there’s a vegetarian restaurant next door so I go in to have lunch ($8.08):
- Longjing tea
- tofu slivers with watercress? with sesame oil
- assorted veggies with bamboo shoots (green and red pepper slivers, dofugan and something
After I get back to the campus I walk to the bank ATM for a withdrawal then walk to the art market to buy from several shops:
- three fan covers ($15.85)
- sword case/cover ($5.54)
- four brushes ($54.22)
- two brushes from another shop
On the way back to school I walk through the nearby temple of Confucius.
Returning to my room, I take an hour nap since my legs are tired, then walk to a Hefang street scissors shop for souvenirs ($57.07) where I buy five pairs of “fancy scissors” and three small folding scissors. Rather than return me exact change they offer me what may be a metal ear cleaner instead. I also find a shoe store and buy a pair of traditional Chinese shoes for myself ($3.96).
6:00 PM – On my way back I stop at another restaurant near Hefang Street for dinner ($7.13):
- a chunk of what seems to be stewed pork
- Thai lotus root breaded and deep-fried in a tomato? based sauce, with just a little spicy heat
- green beans
Before leaving Hefang Street I stop at a bakery called “A New Cafe Shop” for a chocolate “Bomb” and black sesame bread ($1.82).