Maojiabu

This guide to Maojiabu in Hangzhou traces a centuries-old ferry crossing where pilgrims bound for Lingyin Temple bargained with boatmen for a ride across the lake to this muddy landing, named for the Mao family who worked the shore. It follows the busy dockside routine: the fare haggling, the vegetarian meal by the water, and the old incense trail travelers walked from here toward Tianzhu Hill. Then in the 1940s a new road reached Lingyin directly, and the boat trade that had defined this shoreline for centuries lost its reason to exist almost overnight. Listen for how quiet this stretch of water is now, compared with what the guide describes.