The sun was shining this morning but we had been told it would be cooler so I dressed a bit warmer today. From our window you could see a lovely little courtyard – again with the water, wood and architecture but we never did find a way in to investigate. I did notice a tennis court on the rooftop near our window. Nobody was out there playing but it may have been too early.
This morning’s coffee was quite delicious – the best I’ve had. Another lovely buffet breakfast and then we were loaded onto the bus to head off to the fresh water pearl store.
We were given a very short demo of cutting open an oyster and counting all the pearls inside. The demonstration of pearl production in Vietnam was much more thorough. This visit was another hard sell but I resisted. Some of the others were able to drive a few good bargains and came away with some lovely jewelry. I enjoyed the breeze and birds outside.
Christina bade us goodbye and we headed out on the bus for a three hour trip to Hangzhou. We had a stop along the way at an ‘En Route’ style convenience store. I noticed a really nice-looking SUV that turned out to be a Chinese model. If they ever make it to North America I bet they will be really popular.
The hotel in Hangzhou isn’t quite as nice as our previous hotels but it is decent. A number of our group went off to enjoy the optional show at West Lake. Dave and Dawne and I wandered down the street and found a nice little spot for supper. Afterwards we met up with John – the son of a friend of theirs. John has been teaching in China for a number of years and has recently moved to Hangzhou. I left them to head back for an early night.