Five Reasons to Live in Hangzhou杭州宜居的五個理由

莉迪婭·舒

Tea and greenery offer relaxation in this hub of industries old and new.在這個新舊產(chǎn)業(yè)交匯的中心，茶和青枝綠葉使人放松。

Birthplace of Longjing tea （Dragon Well tea） and home to ecommerce powerhouse Alibaba， the emerging tech hub and capital of eastern China’s Zhejiang province is also known for its beautiful landscapes and traditional silk industry.

Culture by the water

Situated in the city centre， Hangzhou’s West Lake is both a breathtakingly scenic spot and a cultural landmark. Famous for its influence on Chinese poetry， paintings and garden design， the Unesco World Heritage Site’s significance is such that it features on the back of the Rmb1 banknote1. Locals like to cycle down the Su and Bai causeways， taking in the gorgeous views of the water， mountains， bridges and pagodas.

Known as “the kidney of Hangzhou” for its cleansing properties， the Xixi National Wetland Park， a 20-minute drive from West Lake， is a conglomeration of ponds， lakes， swamps and villages that dates back to the Han dynasty （third century AD）. With a vivid cultural heritage， the wetlands play host to one of the biggest dragon boat festivals in south China every June and continue to be a home to the ancient crafts of silk farming and book engraving.

Two-wheeled adventures

The city has the largest public bicycle-sharing system in the world， with five times the number of bikes in London despite having only a slightly larger population， at 9.47m. Bike rental is as easy as downloading an app and scanning a code. A single ride costs Rmb1， a mere $0.14.

Growing tech hub

Hangzhou is home to 26 unicorn companies （privately owned companies valued at more than $1bn） and 105 companies valued at more than $100m. With these companies mostly focused on ecommerce， IT and internet financing， Hangzhou is at the forefront of China’s drive to develop its digital economy and tech and innovation capacities.

The city is fast becoming one of the biggest innovation centres globally for artificial intelligence and robotics， with the Zhejiang government developing several IT centres—such as the Future Sci-Tech City—as part of a five-year plan unveiled last year.

The district government has partnered with Chinese ecommerce giant Alibaba to foster a business environment conducive to local start-ups in Future Sci-Tech City. It hosts Alibaba’s headquarters and other fast-growing start-ups， including AI specialist Rokid2.

In a similar vein， Hangzhou’s fintech capital Xixi Valley Internet Finance Town now hosts more than 250 companies， including Zhima， Mogujie and Ant Financial Services. The Hangzhou Blockchain Industrial Park opened in April this year， with $1.6bn of funding announced for blockchain start-ups， 30 per cent of which was supplied by the Yuhang district government.

Time for tea

Hangzhou is home to one of China’s favourite teas， Longjing tea （Dragon Well tea）， a variety of pan-roasted green tea known for its aromatic flavour and health benefits.

With Longjing tea fields located a 20-minute drive from the city centre in Meijiawu and Longjing tea villages， Hangzhou residents have easy access to a wide variety of premium quality but affordable tea leaves at local markets such as the Hangzhou Jiefang Road Non-staple Food Tea Market. A popular weekend pastime is to hike through the sprawling tea fields and enjoy a meal with freshly picked tea at one of the village tea houses.

Silk sensations3

Silk has been one of the cornerstones of Hangzhou’s economy since the Tang Dynasty （from the seventh to 10th centuries）， when the fabric was reserved for the imperial family， and the Southern Song Dynasty （10th to 13th centuries）， when the silk industry began to thrive and Hangzhou earned its moniker4 the Capital of Silk.

Today， Hangzhou remains famous for producing high-quality silk and satin. Locals visit Silk City， one of China’s biggest wholesale and retail markets for silk， to pick up fabrics， scarves， garments and handicraft that are also exported across the globe.

杭州是龍井茶的發(fā)源地，也是電子商務(wù)巨頭阿里巴巴總部的所在地。它作為新興的科技中心和華東浙江省的省會，也以其美麗的風景和傳統(tǒng)絲織業(yè)聞名于世。

水鄉(xiāng)文化

位于市中心的杭州西湖不僅是讓人嘆為觀止的風景勝地，還是一個文化地標，以其對中國詩歌、繪畫和園林設(shè)計的影響而著稱，被聯(lián)合國教科文組織認定為世界遺產(chǎn)，意義重大，西湖的景觀也因此成為1元人民幣紙幣背面的圖案。當?shù)厝讼矚g沿著蘇堤和白堤邊騎車邊觀賞美麗的水、山、橋、塔。

以其凈化特性而享有“杭州之腎”美譽的西溪國家濕地公園，距西湖20分鐘車程，集池塘、湖泊、沼澤和村落于一體，歷史可追溯到漢代（公元3世紀）。濕地有著鮮活的文化遺產(chǎn)，每年6月都會主辦華南地區(qū)最大的龍舟文化節(jié)，并且一直是養(yǎng)蠶繅絲和雕版刻印的古老工藝之鄉(xiāng)。

兩輪騎游

這個城市擁有世界上最大的公共自行車共享系統(tǒng)，盡管947萬的人口只比倫敦多一點，但是自行車數(shù)量卻是倫敦的5倍。自行車租賃簡單到只需下載一個手機應用，然后掃碼。騎行一程費用1元人民幣，僅相當于0.14美元。

持續(xù)發(fā)展的技術(shù)中心

杭州是26家獨角獸公司（價值10億美元以上的私有公司）和105家價值1億美元以上公司的所在地。這些公司大多主要從事電子商務(wù)、信息技術(shù)和互聯(lián)網(wǎng)金融，杭州便處于中國發(fā)展數(shù)字經(jīng)濟和技術(shù)創(chuàng)新生產(chǎn)力的前沿。

作為去年公布的五年計劃的一部分，浙江省政府開發(fā)了未來科技城等幾個互聯(lián)網(wǎng)技術(shù)中心，該市很快成為全球最大的人工智能和機器人創(chuàng)新中心之一。

區(qū)政府和中國電子商務(wù)巨頭阿里巴巴合作，在未來科技城營造有益于當?shù)爻鮿?chuàng)企業(yè)的商業(yè)環(huán)境。阿里巴巴總部和人工智能專業(yè)公司若琪等其他快速成長的初創(chuàng)企業(yè)已落戶其中。

與此相似，杭州的科技金融中心西溪谷互聯(lián)網(wǎng)金融小鎮(zhèn)已有250多家公司入駐，包括芝麻信用、蘑菇街和螞蟻金服。杭州區(qū)塊鏈產(chǎn)業(yè)園已于今年4月開園，宣布為區(qū)塊鏈初創(chuàng)企業(yè)提供16億美元資金，其中30%由余杭區(qū)政府提供。

品茶時間

杭州是中國人最喜愛的茶之一龍井茶的故鄉(xiāng)。龍井茶是一種用平鍋炒制的綠茶，以其氣味芳香和有益健康聞名。

龍井茶產(chǎn)地位于梅家塢和龍井村，距市中心20分鐘車程，所以杭州居民可以很方便地在杭州解放路副食品茶葉市場等當?shù)厥袌鲑I到各種各樣質(zhì)優(yōu)價廉的茶葉。廣受歡迎的周末消遣方式是徒步穿過綿延不絕的茶園，然后到其中一家農(nóng)家茶館里享用美食，品一品新采的茶。

絲綢美名揚

自唐宋以來，絲綢一直是杭州經(jīng)濟的支柱之一。在唐代（7到10世紀），絲綢是皇室供品，到了南宋時期（10到13世紀），絲綢工業(yè)開始興盛，杭州贏得了綢都的稱號。

如今杭州仍以生產(chǎn)高質(zhì)量的絲綢和綢緞聞名。當?shù)厝巳ブ袊畲蟮慕z綢批發(fā)零售市場之一——絲綢城挑選面料、圍巾、服裝和手工藝品，這些產(chǎn)品也出口到全球各地。

（譯者為“《英語世界》杯”翻譯大賽獲獎選手）