Wide and Narrow alley — JW Journeys

Rated as one the top 10 most beautiful streets in Chengdu, the wide and narrow alleys has been around since 1718. It has been the central residential area in Chengdu for over 2300 years. During the Qing dynasty, this area was the military base for the eight legions soldiers and the ruling class was Manchurian chinese. The normal Han chinese were not allowed into this area. Over the years it has evolved and became a protected historical region in 2003. Legend has it that in the 80’s city surveyors came to this area and saw that some areas are wider and called it the wide alleys. There is also a stretch of narrow alley and they named it the narrow alley.

When my local friends grew up near the area, they visited these streets to play soccer and at the time there were just old buildings and alleys. During 2003, the Chengdu government decided to preserve the area and after the 2005 renovation, it is now one of the most popular tourist areas in Chengdu. The preservation effort is undertaken by CSWADI ( China South Western Architectural and Design Institute) which also helped with the famous Tang architecture TaiGuLi shopping area.

Wide and narrow alley 宽窄巷子 traditional brick facade

The wide alley

The wide alley is designed to showcase the leisure life of Chengdu where there are teahouses everywhere and life is slower. You can sit down to enjoy a cup of tea here or have a traditional snack/meal at one of the restaurants. The food at this area is overpriced and not very authentic, best to eat elsewhere.

The narrow alley

The narrow alley portrays the slow life of Chengdu. You will find coffee shops, bars, tea houses, snacks along the narrow alley. You caan also try a traditional Chengdu ear cleaning regime.

Famous building - No 11 恺庐 Kai Lu

This used to be someone’s house and the style is very unique. The words “恺庐” read from right to left means a free and happy house. Presumably, the owner wanted to keep this place special. The round rock face is traditionally chinese and is meant to keep out evil spirits. It is definitely the most prominent building in the area.

Wide and narrow alley 宽窄巷子 historical building

Wide and narrow alley 宽窄巷子 traditional chinese starbucks

Tips:

Can get crowded, watch for personal items
The food inside this boundary is expensive and not very good, eat closeby https://www.jwjourneys.com/blog/2018/4/12/eating-invasive-species-hotpot

Area to search on Baidu map / Gaode map:宽窄巷子

Hours: Shops open around 10am to 9 pm, bars are opened later

Transportation: Metro line 4 ( 宽窄巷子） KuanZai Alley