There are four beautiful islands in West Lake and the largest one of called named Three Pools or The Lesser Yingzhou Isle. The isle itself is a man made landscape from 1607 and its beauty is almost beyond imagination. The delightfulness and richness of gardening and harmony is astonishing. The islet itself has a minor lake so it’s an islet in a lake with a lake you are entering when here. The isle was in the beginning, during the Wu– and Yue Kingdoms, a Buddhist monastery called Baoning Temple. Later on, in the Ming Dynasty, the isle was surrounded by a dike enclosing the water round the monastery. Entering the island you will find lovely small pavilions and a very well balanced Chinese garden landscape.
A small zigzag bridge will take you further out on the lake on the island. At the southern part on the island, rising from the water, there are three 2-meters high and hollow stone pagodas from the late 11th century. On a full moon night people can row out to the pagodas, place a candle in the stone and a light will come out of the five equally spaced windows reflecting the moon into the water and making it look like there were several magic moons in the water.
The place is recommended as one of the best scenic spots in the West Lake.