The biggest draw of it is the glass corridor that offers a vantage point to have a panoramic view of the fantastic scenery of Qiantang River.
It is free, and people can enter and visit by appointment. People who want to ascend the top of the pagoda need to pay 20 yuan though. It, heralded as “a crystal pagoda floating on water ”, is the National Water Museum of China (中国水利博物馆).
The Secret Corner of Hangzhou
In Hangzhou, the majority of places suitable to visit during spring have been packed with people. The National Water Museum of China is a national-level industrial museum directly under the Ministry of Water Resources. It is located at the southern bank of Qiantang River, near Xiaoshan Higher Education Zone.
The overall construction area of the museum is 36,500 square meters with a height of 128.9 meters. It combines the features of a pagoda and a museum to achieve the perfect integration of classical charm, modern materials and advanced technology, and becomes a crystal pagoda “floating” on the water.
If you come here on weekdays, you will find that it is a rarely-seen place with few people but a large area.
The exterior of the museum combines the application of steel and glass, which is very rare in China. The museum presents a different charm, from whichever angle people take.
Stepping out the elevator, people will see a big golden stele engraved with water conservancy-related texts and flights of glass staircases spiraling up by simply raising their heads.
Following the staircases to the top, you will feel that your feet become heavier and heavier. But once you reach the top, you will find the view the pagoda offers is surprisingly amazing.
Overlooking Qiantang River from a Height of 100 Meters
Just outside the door of the top floor, there is an all-glass corridor open to the outside, from which the distribution of the landscape design at the main entrance of the museum can be clearly seen.
The view from a height of nearly 100 meters can only be described as “absolutely fabulous”.
More than half of the area around the pagoda is occupied by water, presenting a perfect transition from the style of urban parks to rural scenery. Even without a drone, people can find a great angle to take a plan view using mobile phones.
Wandering around, you will find that the isolated island in spring is accompanied by flocks of birds, and the windmill on the shore is dancing with water weeds.
The water splashes against stone steps, and the reeds sway in the wind.
A Witness to History
It’s not just a pagoda, but also a museum.
The first and second stories of the pagoda are open to the public for free, displaying various types of water conservancy-related cultural relics and materials in China.
Though there are many exhibition halls, if you visit these exhibition halls in chronological order, you can get a rough idea of important water conservancy events in history.
There are the recreated scenes of “King Yu tamed the flood”, the water conservancy machinery and tools of the past dynasties, etc., showcasing the wisdom of the ancients in water utilization, and various water regulation spirits such as modern water basin regulation, South-to-North Water Diversion.
The museum integrates such functions as education, research, collection, protection and exchange. Exhibition halls currently open to the public include the water and human civilization exhibition area, the basic display area of water conservancy, the “praying to the dragon for rain” exhibition area and the outdoor flood control, water diversion, praying for rain culture exhibition areas, etc.
It is not only suitable for people wanting to know about water conservancy-related knowledge, but also suitable for parents to take their kids here to visit and learn, allowing children to acquire knowledge from the many on-the-spot experience scenes.
The National Museum of Water
中国水利博物馆
Address: 1 Shuibo Avenue, Xiaoshan District 萧山区水博大道1号
Hours: Tuesday to Sunday (09:00-16:30, no entry after 16:00)
Contact: +86 571 82863601
Transportation:
1. take subway line 2 to the subway station of “Yingfeng Road (simplified Chinese: 盈丰路; pinyin: ying feng lu)”, then walk for two minutes to the bus stop of Subway Yingfeng Station (simplified Chinese: 地铁盈丰站; pinyin: di tie ying feng zhan) where you can transfer to bus 323 to the bus stop of “Water Museum Intersection (simplified Chinese: 水博园路口；pinyin: shui bo yuan lu kou)”, walk for another 12 minutes to the destination.
2. take subway line 2 or 6 to the subway station of “Qianjiang Century City (simplified Chinese: 钱江世纪城; pinyin: qian jiang shi ji cheng)”, then walk for five minutes to the bus stop of Qianjiang Century City and transfer to bus 519 to Water Museum Intersection (simplified Chinese: 水博园路口; pinyin: shui bo yuan lu kou), walk for another 12 minutes to the destination.
Museum Visitation Guide
Reservation is needed and can be made in the official WeChat account of “中国水利博物馆 (the Nation Water Museum of China)”