A grassy ridge of rammed earth runs through a park on the old east side, and neighbors walk, jog and fly kites along the top of a wall raised by the Shang dynasty. A few blocks west, the twin-pagoda Erqi Tower stands over Erqi Square, where shoppers drift down Dehua Street into the evening.
Out east, Zhengdong New Area loops its glass towers around Ruyi Lake, and locals point out the corn-shaped Greenland Plaza tower they call Big Corn. Summers are hot and rainy, winters cold and dry, and short spring and autumn are the easy months. A Local Friend can walk you through their own neighborhood, to the noodle shop and the park bench that never make the guidebooks.
