When I see the map of China, for some strange reason, I am reminded of Madeleine de Scudery’s Map of Tenderness. In 1653, this lady drew a map of an imaginary land that represents the path to love. All the place names on De Scudery’s map refer to a mood or an emotion. On the map, there is a lake called The Lake of Indifference. It is certainly Xi Hu, the West Lake, in Hangzhou. This body of water makes the city unique. It seems that nothing can be done without the imposing presence of this lake. Paradoxically, being a constant feature in the city makes it, indeed, indifferent. I walk in the historic area of the city near Nan Shan Lu. It is infested with tourists. There is a mosque of the Hui people and a monument dedicated to printing. In the West, few know that printing was born here before Gutenberg. For a foreigner, except for Beijing, Xi’an, and Lhasa, all Chinese cities, especially the centers, are pretty much the same. Tall skyscrapers, …