Longjingshan Tea Cultural Village | Highlights of China

While in Hangzhou, China I visited the Longjingshan Tea Cultural Village nestled between a vast expansion of green tea gardens.

The term "village" was a bit misleading as the grounds are really made up of just a few buildings surrounding a lily pad fountain.

I thought the fountain was pretty cute, no? 😉

Inside, we learned about Longjing tea (literally translated as Dragon Well tea) which is a type of green tea local to the area. This tea is produced mostly by hand and has many positive health benefits.

The tea was naturally smooth tasting and we even ate the leaves! I was skeptical at first but this cup was gone in an instant. 

Despite the interesting nature of the tea, I would warn against visiting. The center is located more specifically in the Zhejiang Province of China, about a 3 hour drive from the local city of Hanzhou. Once there, beyond the pretty buildings and tea samples, there is not much to do.  😕 

Furthermore, these ladies pouring tea were thumping the stuff like no tomorrow! Asking us to buy pounds of it in addition to some "miracle" tea pills as well. 

Honestly, I would have bought some tea for the taste alone if it wasn't for the rude way our "guides" dissuaded questions about anything besides the purchasable products. To top it off, we HAD to exit through an enormous gift shop with some tea products but mostly junk. 😒 

On the upside the court yard and surrounding tea gardens did make for good photos. Below are some of my better shots:

All and all, @slickwilly and I enjoyed our visit, it was a nice break from the city and an interesting glimpse into the Chinese tea industry. 

To read about my more enjoyable adventures in Hangzhou, stay tuned!