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Qiantang River: Tide Watching
The extraordinary surging tide of the Qiantang River is a world-renowned natural wonder caused by a combination of the gravitation of the celestial body, the centrifugal force produced by the rotation of the earth and by the peculiar bottleneck geography of Hangzhou Bay.

A tidal wave is sometimes created by the bores surging into the river with the momentum of an avalanche as a magnificent and breath-taking scene. One time the tidal wave reached 8 meters high.

An annual ritual takes place on August 18 of the lunar calendar year, which is the traditional tide-watching day when people throng to the Qiantang River to watch this amazing natural wonder. Watching the bores at the Qiantang River has been taking place each year for over 2,000 years. The observation area is at Yanguan Town where spectators can also have a glimpse into the traditional Chinese culture by visiting many other historical structures, such as the Sea-Pacifying Pagoda, the Temple of the Ocean God and Zhongshan Pavilion.

West Lake

Hangzhou's fame rests mainly with the picturesque West Lake, so named because it is located on the town's western fringe. The 6.03-square-kilometer West Lake, with water surface totaling 5.66 square kilometers, has five sections: the Outer Lake, the Inner Lake, the Yuhu Lake, the Xili Lake and the Lesser Nanhu Lake. The Outer Lake, the main body of West lake, has three small islands--- Three Pools Mirroring the Moon, Mid-Lake Pavilion, and Master Yuan's Mound which--- which are reminiscent of the sacred Penglai Island in the Bohai Sea. The scenic zone with the West Lake as the center is home to forty or so major tourist attractions and thirty sites of historical interest but no tourist should leave Hangzhou without seeing what is called " Ten Sights of the West Lake". As a result of generations of hard labor, the ancient buildings, sculptures, temples and gardens have been skillfully weaved every nook and corner to complement the natural landscape of water, wooded hills, caves and springs to make this famous resort into a magical mosaic setting.

Solitary Island (West Lake)
Solitary Island (Gu Shan) sits in the northwest corner of West Lake. This is the largest island on the lake and an ideal place to wander and explore. Views over the lake from its banks are spectacular and there are a few places of historical interest scattered about the island itself.
On the north side of the island is Wenlan Pavilion, the pristine and peaceful Zhongshan Park and the Zhejiang Provincial Museum, which is actually part of the original imperial palace. To the west of the island and at the top of the small hill is the Xiling Seal Society. The tomb of Qiu Jin, a female revolutionary, is at the foot of the hill. Qiu Jin was an early pro-democracy campaigner and part of Dr. Sun Yatsen's team of fighters in the 1900s. The pavilion known as "Autumn Moon on a Calm Lake Pavilion" was built on the northeast part of the mountain, in memory of the reclusive poet from the Song Dynasty, Lin Hejin. Legend has it that the poet believed the blossom on the trees was his wife and the crane was his son!