Longjing Village

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Imagine a tea garden right in the heart of the city with a beautiful lake right next to it and restaurants and park space all around it.  Well, that is Longjing Village in the heart of famous Hangzhou in China, next to West Lake.  Not only is there a magnificent tea garden but also a Tea Museum and a small exhibit area with various tea cultivars including the famous purple-leaf bud bush.  We were again surprised to see a garden full of bushes with leaf ripe for plucking yet knowing that in China, the plucking season is over! The other picture is of the famous Leifeng Pagoda originally built in 975 AD.  It was attacked during the Ming Dynasty and left in ruins and eventually collapsed in its entirety in 1924.  In 1999, a total renovation was undertaken and it re-opened atop the ruins of the old one in October 2002.  It is a spectacular attraction right in the heart of the city.