Chengdu Local Lifestyle – Leisure and Relaxing Life

The Most Famous Activities of Chengdu Locals

1. Stroll to the Park for Entertainment

Chengdu has a lot of parks. They are People's Park, Huanhuaxi Park, Baihuatan Park, Culture Park, River-viewing Pavilion Park, and International Intangible Cultural Heritage Park, etc. Each park has its own specialty. At most parks, you will be able to find people singing, dancing, practicing Chinese calligraphy and exercising.

As an example, People's Park is a good place to know Chengdu locals. People's Park is host to a colorful mix of Chengdu residents who are always out enjoying themselves in the open air. In the park, you always see grandparents with their grandchildren in tow, joggers, Taichi enthusiasts, gamers, musicians and even tea drinkers in need of a good ear cleaning. If you come to Chengdu in late autumn, you will have a good opportunity to enjoy the golden and yellow leaves of ginkgo biloba in the park.

2. Have a Cup of Tea in Teahouse with Good Friends

"He Cha" (drink the tea) has become the popular communication expression among Chengdu people. Tea Houses can be found in every corner of Chengdu downtown, and even in town and village. Going there is one way to kill the leisure time. For one reason, the tea can prevent people from the diseases caused by wet and hot weather. For the other, Chengdu people love tea and love to chat with friends or do business over tea.

Besides tea, most teahouses also offer food, and snacks to clients. Many teahouses offer some performances such as storytelling, local opera, or live music. So folks love to go to a teahouse in the morning and spend the day there.

3. Play Mahjong and Sichuan Cards Games in Tea Houses

In Chengdu, people like to play the Mahjong, especially when drinking a cup of tea in Tea Houses. Chinese mahjong is said to originate from 3000-4000 year ago, when it prevailed merely among the noble. But now, from north to the south, people, men and women, young and old, are playing mahjong, so it is safe to say that mahjong is one of the quintessence of Chinese culture.

The other extremely popular game is Doudizhu ( Fight with the Landlord ). It is a kind of card game which needs four people together to play. In the game, one player plays the landlord, and the other players team up to fight with the landlord.

4. Appreciate Chuan Opera in Night

Chuan Opera is one of the five most popular operas in China. Each opera has its own characteristics. Chuan Opera is unique for the performance offering more than just singing and martial arts. It also features acrobatics, fire-breathing and the magic of face changing.

The best opera theatre is the Shufeng Sichuan Opera House which is located at No. 23 Qintai Road, Chengdu.

5. Do Some Shopping for Young Beautiful Ladies

"Chengdu is known for its pretty women, but Chengdu girls are not beauties in the traditional sense." A Chengdu-based writer has portrayed Chengdu girls in this way. The girls love their life and more love to go shopping. They are always come across in the two main shopping district: Chunxi Road, located close to downtown; and Hehuachi Wholesale Shopping District.

6. Taste Chengdu Hot Pot and Peppery Snacks

Sichuan people specially love to eat spicy-hot flavors, fragrant and peppercorns, which let the first visitors hard to bear. When you order your regular dishes and start to eat, you fill fiery-red oil chili peppers and numbing peppercorns with your mouth. It is so hot. But Chengdu locals like to put the seasoning in each dish. For the main reason, it can prevent people from the diseases caused by wet weather of Chengdu.

The famous hot pots in Chengdu including fish head hotpot, tonic hotpot, entire sheep hotpot, four tastes hotpot and Yuanyang hotpot.

For Sichuan Snacks, the "spicy" is the best word to describe. These are the unique point of Sichuan cuisine.