Lishui - dream in the middle of nowhere

How many of you have heard about Lishui? :o) Don’t worry. Most Chinese people have neither. No wonder. Whole city has a diameter around 7 km which means that you can walk from one end to the other in less than 2 hours. It really is a place where everything is close and it’s difficult to get lost. So why in the world you’ve decided to live and work in that kind of place?! Simple. Because of the mountains. Ridiculous? Maybe.

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View on Lishui from Nanming Mountain

It’s probably the right time to face the truth: you’re a simple soul that is happy as long as it has a nice place to go for a walk. Going by that criteria Lishui is a very embodiment of your dreams. At the end of each street you can see a mountain and you can reach each of them in around 10 minutes by city bus. You simply can’t resist that kind of temptation. You hike at least once a week (but usually more often as long as time allows). I guess you’ve never been more fit before. What’s so great about these mountains? Since a picture is worth a thousand words just look below.

You’re right. You love the place (at least from October to May. Between June and September your affection towards the city starts melting a little in 40oC summer heat).

At the end a few tips:

1. Location: Zhejiang Province, around 500 km SW from Shanghai
2. Temperature: winter – usually 5-10oC. Summer - 30 (at night) - 40oC (during the day). Spring and autumn somewhere between 15 and 25 degrees.
3. Best time to visit: October and November (it’s sunny and not hot anymore). March and April are also very beautiful (everything blooms in the mountains), but it rains nearly every second day.
4.  Public transport:

• Buses: 1,5 – 3 RMB (20-50 cents) per ticket (you can check the schedule and routes here. Website is in Chinese, but if you open it in Google Chrome, you can have it translated :o)
• Taxi: very cheap. Ride from one end of the city to the other is less than 20 RMB (around 3$).

5. How to get to Lishui:

• From Shanghai:
•  – by train: South Train Station (Time: 8h. Cost:  71RMB. Only one departure each day)
• - by bus: Long Distance Bus Station, 1666 Zhongxing Street (Time: around 6 hours. Cost: 170RMB. 2 buses a day)
• From Hangzhou:
•  – by train: Railway Station (there is only one, look at google maps, )
• – by bus : South Bus Station (buses run every hour until around 19.00. Time: 3,5h. Cost: 127RMB)
• From Wenzhou:
•  – by train: Railway Station, Wenzhou Ave (Time: 2h. Cost: 22RMB)
• – by bu: Huanglong Passenger Transport Terminal‎ (Time: 1,5h. Cost: 55RMB)

You can check train schedule and ticket prices here)