Call Me Crazy, But Hangzhou Totally Outshines Kyoto.
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Hangzhou and Kyoto are actually quite similar. Both claim to be ancient capitals, but neither truly has that ancient capital vibe. Both city centers feature moderately tall buildings, and their main scenic areas are nestled in the mountains. The Arashiyama Bamboo Grove is strikingly similar to the Yunqi Bamboo Path, and Ninenzaka and Sannenzaka really remind me of the Drum Tower area in Hangzhou.
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Walking around Kyoto felt very familiar to me, but I didn't like it.
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Great! You all should just stick to traveling within China. That way, there'll be fewer Chinese tourists when I visit Japan.
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Xiaohongshu is full of Chinese people, yet I don't see you using it any less.
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Kyoto is a global tourist destination, while Hangzhou is primarily a domestic one. They're on different levels.
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That's just because Hangzhou isn't well-promoted internationally, while Japan gets more recognition, partly due to its alignment with Western preferences. Actually, I was chatting with old classmates from the UK recently. After seeing a promo video for Hangzhou, they're already looking up flights, admitting they had no idea how beautiful Hangzhou is. Jingshan in Hangzhou is the birthplace of Japanese Zen Buddhism, and their tea culture was also adopted from there. Hangzhou boasts a richer cultural and historical heritage, and its scenery is superior too.
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Kyoto has a serene, almost hidden-world kind of tranquility. I only visited Hangzhou briefly once and found it quite boring.
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Your sense of aesthetics needs improvement.
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I feel Kyoto is a bit more untouched and tranquil.
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The mountains around Hangzhou's West Lake are genuine subtropical native forests, you know!
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Kyoto, beautiful? My foot! Coming to Japan just to see its scenery is so uninspired.
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This is very beautiful!
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Do you think people go to Japan just to see a few trees? Anyone can create a scene like this.
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Oh, so what are you there to see? The 'Tokyo BBQ' or the 'Hiroshima fireworks'?