From November 22 to December 18, my mom came to visit me in Shanghai. After seven years, this was her second visit to this metropolis, but this time she did not come alone. She was joined on the trip by Mrs. Silva and Mr. Žarko, husband and wife, who count similar years as mom. They have known each other for a long time, at least for 10 years, ever since my mother helped care for, now unfortunately deceased, Žarko’s mother. All three are great travel enthusiasts, I might say even, cosmopolitans, who love learning about different places, cultures, religions, cuisine…, and they do all this in a spirit of respect and humility towards all the people of this world. I did not know Žarko and Silva well. I had met Žarko briefly a few times before, and I met Silva for the first time at Shanghai Airport, where I was waiting for them on their arrival in China. After almost a month of wandering around Shanghai and other cities and provinces of China together, I had the opportunity to get to know them very well. There aren’t enough superlatives to describe them. Both are simply fantastic people: positive, simple, full of energy, fun, patient, never in a bad mood, respectful and kind to everyone, and at the same time ready to try even the most exotic food, in even the most untidy places. These are all values that I really like and appreciate about people, values that my mother tried to instill in me when I was younger, values that I am trying to live day by day, everyday. In short, I’m really glad I managed to get to know both better and join them, together with mom, at some parts of their trip around China.
We really spent a lot of time together. At first, I helped them navigate the city using maps and public transport, I helped with translations and how to use certain Chinese applications with payment methods, etc. With my basic and broken Chinese, however, I helped them ease up communication a little in restaurants, banks, hotels, and streets. On the other hand, they have led me, with their enthusiasm and research spirit, to many attractive points in the city of Shanghai, which I myself have not managed to visit in more than five years of living here. Of course, we visited the famous Bund, Nanjing Street, the West Bund, and the “Chinese Venice”, which are near Shanghai, several temples, the Yu garden, some museums, many restaurants, parks…, we danced, laughed and enjoyed the pulse of the city and the friendliness of the Shanghai people.
But not only did we explore Shanghai, but also flew by plane to Guilin, Guangxi, southwest China, where we stayed for 4 days and saw really a lot: from Longji rice terraces, whose view was a little spoiled by a very thick fog that could be cut with a knife; to the countless karst mountains and hills that rose from the sea thousands of years ago due to tectonic movements and for which Guangxi region became world famous. Žarko and I climbed one of them, out of 30.000 (the locals say). We visited the ancient city of Xingping, the 600-year-old Fuli Bridge, and drove along the Yulong River. We also explored the beautiful city of Guilin, where we stayed and which impressed us all with its beauty, energy and kindness of people. After the end of Guilin, our paths took us elsewhere. My mom and I took a high-speed train back to Shanghai, and Silva and Žarka travelled to Xi’an, also by high-speed train.
Of all the adventures and trips, we did together, I would like to highlight one, that will remain in my memory for a very long time. It was a day visit to Hangzhou – just an hour drive from Shanghai by high-speed train – and a visit to the beautiful Longjing village there, located about 20 kilometers from Hangzhou Central Station. Silva thoroughly explored the tourist attractions around Shanghai and made a list of them – one of them was the village of Longjing, which is not an ordinary village, but is a village that is well-known for its vast green tea plantations and its world-renowned green Longjing tea. As a big fan of Chinese tea, I was most excited about visiting this village. I had never seen tea plantations before (*nor have I ever seen rice plantations before until visiting Guangxi), but I always wanted to. My wish finally fulfilled that day. If I knew that the tea plantation is only an hour from Shanghai, I would have surely visited this village much earlier. However, we took a taxi from the train station past beautiful scenic West Lake and started driving up the hill towards the village. Along the way, we met many cyclists, some went faster, others slower, breathing on all lungs up the hill and trying to improve their personal record. At the top of the hill on which the village of Longjing lies, a taxi stopped. We were at the finish line.
Longjing Village 龙井村, Lóngjǐng 龙井 literally means “dragon well”, is situated in the mountainous area in the southwest of the West Lake Scenic Area in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province. Longjing Village is famous for producing top quality Longjing tea, known as the “No. 1 Village of Tea”. Surrounded by high mountains, Longjing Village is not only the residence of over 800 people but the growing plantation of nearly 800 acres of Longjing Tea as well.
Longjing Tea or “dragon well” tea 龙井茶 is a type of green tea of over 1200 years old growing in the surrounding area of the world famous West Lake in Hangzhou. The tea is the No. 1 among the Top 10 Famous Tea in China. With verdant color on the leaves, strong fragrance, sweet flavor and elegant form, Longjing tea is given the reputable name of the “Green Queen” and the “Golden Card” of Hangzhou city. Since its surrounding area has fertile land, multiple high mountains and a very good climate, the Longjing Tea could grow under the perfect-given natural condition.
Where are all these plantations now, we wondered (!?), and wandered up and down the hill until one lady in her 70s came across us. She was local. I asked her about tea plantations, and she just smiled and said: ”follow me”. From the main road we turned into a narrow alley, which led us among the houses of this idyllic village. After 10 minutes of walking, all of a sudden a view opened up for us, a view which I will never forget – there were vast hills and valleys completely covered with tea bushes, the leaves of which were glowing in the sun on that crystal clear and warm day. It was simply amazing, it was like in a movie. I couldn’t hide my enthusiasm, none of us could. We all just tried to enjoy every moment there. It wasn’t the season, as we were in December, so the bushes weren’t yet sprouting new and fresh leaves. The lady, who turned out to be living these plantations for a lifetime, like her ancestors before her, and owns one of the plantations there, taught us that the harvest began in March and that last year one ton of tea leaves were harvested on her plantation alone. Some plantations are already more than 500 years old. Despite the fact that there was no season, the lady still managed to collect some fresh tea leaves, which peek out ahead of time, and gave them to us.
I do not exaggerate, it really was like in a fairy tale. We were alone, because people in large numbers come when there is a harvest. It was very peaceful, and I was as if I were in seven heavens. If the seventh heaven looks like this? I hope yes. I was really impressed. When we walked one of the hills and enjoyed the beauty and sun, the lady invited us to her home, where she served us different types of tea. The tea is the same, green longjing tea, only the processing is different, she warned us and showed us with her palms how to process the picked leaves. We drank tea, talked and chased the sun’s rays. It was so carefree, so relaxed that we forgot about everything. It was magical, I simply couldn’t wish for a better moment. Peace, a cup of excellent tea and a smiling company. After at least the fourth large cup of tea, we bought some tea to take home, said goodbye to our lady, and took a bus to the valley on the other side of the hill. We got off the bus when the iconic West Lake appeared again and went on a long walk along it. The walk ended with a beautiful sunset over the hills, reflecting across the surface of the lake. Nature in all its glory, again.
I’ve been to Hangzhou before, maybe two or three times, but never as a tourist. Now I know why Hangzhou is considered one of the most beautiful cities in China. What we saw and experienced that day probably none of us imagined, nor expected, when we left Shanghai. In the end, the simple trip we planned turned out to be a very special experience that will remain in our memories for a long time to come.