My hometown, Chongqing, is the biggest industrial and commercial center in southwestern China. It is known as “mountain city” for its mountainous landscape and rivers flowing through the city. The scenery here never fails to attract tourists throughout the world. For example, you can make a voyage of discovery along the Three Gorges, where high cliffs (悬崖) stand face to face on either side of the Yangtze River. Additionally, you will also be satisfied with the night view of the city, including millions of lights and their reflections on the river. Ever since 1997, its rapid economic growth has brought about a sharp increase in the production of industrial products, such as iron, cars and computers.

Thanks to the hot and humid climate, people have developed a preference for the spicy hotpot. When the night comes, occasions are not rare when the citizens are entertained by the performers in Sichuan Opera, an art form with a long history. People here are straight-forward (耿直的), enthusiastic and humorous. But unfortunately, you’ll sometimes fail to understand their creative jokes because of the local dialect and accent.

Life in Ancient Times

The first China-Central Asia Summit (中国-中亚峰会) was held in Xi’an, China on May 18 and 19, 2023. Xi’an was the Tang Dynasty’s capital (called Chang’an then) and was also the starting point of the Silk Road.

As one of the most cosmopolitan (国际化的) cities in the world at that time, Chang’an had over 1 million people in the city, and 200,000 of them were foreigners. Most of them came a long way along the Silk Road. They brought their food, goods, arts and fashion.

①                 

Foreign fashionable clothes were popular in Chang’an. They always had close-fitting sleeves and turn-down collars. Central Asian and Persian people wore these kinds of clothes. People in Chang’an liked to wear them, too.

Yummy food

In Chang’an, there were many kinds of delicious foods brought by people along the Silk Road. Hubing was one of them. It’s a kind of pancake with sesame seeds on it. Travelers on the Silk Road liked to eat it and brought it to Chang’an.

Colorful arts

Dancers from Central Asia were big stars in Chang’an. They could whirl (旋转) very fast on a small carpet. From the emperor to common people, everyone in the city enjoyed the dance. Many musicians from Central Asia preferred playing the harp and pipa.