People's Park & Heming Teahouse

人民公园

A century-old park in the heart of Chengdu. Lidded tea bowls, ear cleaning and the marriage market corner at Heming Teahouse offer the most direct look at everyday life in the city.

People's Park was built in 1911 (originally Shaocheng Park) and was Chengdu's first public park. It sits just west of Tianfu Square in the city center and is free to enter. Its appeal lies less in the scenery than in the people. Inside the park, Heming Teahouse (founded 1923) is Chengdu's oldest open-air teahouse, with bamboo chairs, square tables and gaiwan flower tea (about 20–30 yuan a bowl, refilled until dusk). Once you sit down, an ear-cleaning master will approach with a tuning fork to offer his services (about 30–50 yuan). Shoe shiners, fortune tellers and newspaper sellers circulate, while locals play mahjong and trade stories around you. This is the original “Chengdu slow life.” The park also has the Monument to the Martyrs of the 1911 Railway Protection Movement, boating on Jinshui Creek, a bonsai garden, the weekend marriage market corner (where parents post their children's résumés), and lantern displays during Spring Festival and chrysanthemum shows in autumn.

Tip: Walk over from Kuanzhai Alley in the morning (about 10 minutes). Spend one to two hours at Heming Teahouse to try ear cleaning, drink tea and people-watch. For lunch, head to Cizi Street or Xiaotong Lane opposite the park for authentic Sichuan food. The park is open all day. The teahouse runs roughly 7:00–21:00, and seats are scarce on weekend mornings, so you can save a spot first and order tea afterward. Getting there: Metro Line 2, People's Park Station, Exit A. Note: there are several teahouses nearby, so look for the Heming sign. Ear-cleaning tools should be sterilized, and visitors with sensitivities can just enjoy the tea.

People's Park & Heming Teahouse

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