The visitor to the Sichuan provincial capital is invited to slow down and absorb its historic, cultural and other riches in thoughtful, satisfying sips
Get a Chengdu local talking and you will soon discover that Chengdu is as much a state of mind as it is the sprawling provincial capital of Sichuan. To get a sense of that state of mind, you need go no further than the People's Park.
People's Parks - or renmin gongyuan - are found everywhere in China, but few reflect the way life is lived in the boulevards and alleys that surround them the way Chengdu's parks reflect the city's unique lifestyle.
As in parks elsewhere, you will see couples strolling hand in hand, families on outings and vendors of cold drinks and souvenirs hawking their wares. But in Chengdu, you will also find large numbers of people doing nothing much at all, unlike much of the new hustle-and-bustle China.
'Chengdu people, unlike people in other parts of the country like Shanghai, know how to relax and enjoy life,' said Zhang Fu, a city media relations official. You see them idling on benches overlooking the miniature lake dotted with paddle boats. You see them gathered in small knots, gazing at games of Chinese chess. And you see them en masse at the park's famous Renmin Teashop, hunched over newspapers, games of cards and mahjong, while staff pour tea and itinerant shoulder masseurs look for a few yuan in exchange for their services.
Guidebooks rate the Renmin teashop high on their lists of the top 10 things to see and do in Chengdu. Teashops are as much entwined with the spirit of Chengdu as the public house is with London and the cafe with Paris.