Ximian Bridge

Ximian Bridge takes its name from a bridge over the Funan River where, according to local tradition, soldiers returning from campaigns would wash their faces before entering the city. Whether or not the etymology is accurate, the name attaches to a neighbourhood whose character is shaped by the river.

The Funan River Project, an environmental remediation initiative completed in the late 1990s after decades of industrial use had reduced the river to a polluted drainage ditch, restored the waterway to something approaching its natural state and constructed a linear park along its banks. The park runs for 110 kilometres in total; the section through Ximian Bridge and the adjacent districts is one of the more authentically residential stretches, where the teahouses operate for the local population rather than for visitors.

Chengdu's teahouse culture is one of its most characteristic features — the city is frequently described by Chinese visitors from other provinces as having a uniquely relaxed pace, and the teahouse is the institutional expression of this. The gaiwan tea service — a small covered bowl of green or jasmine tea, refilled regularly by a server carrying a long-spouted copper kettle — is the format; mahjong, cards, and conversation are the activities; the afternoon is the time. The riverside settings at Ximian Bridge, with bamboo chairs facing the water and the sound of mahjong tiles on the table, are among the most accessible versions of this culture for visitors.

The Wangjiaqiao wetland, a managed ecological area a short distance east along the river, supports migratory birds in spring and autumn and is a pleasant addition to a riverside afternoon.