Step back in time

Qingdao, in Shandong province, is a beautiful seaside city, no doubt about it. However, many locals say that if visitors don't take a walk on its stone steps, they can't say they have really been there.

These stone steps, built almost 100 years ago, when Qingdao was occupied by Germany, can be seen everywhere in the city's hilly residential area.

This may be one of the only cities where walking is faster than riding a bike. That's because locals have to walk rather than ride on the granite-stepped paths.

 It's physically demanding for a groom to carry his bride down the stone steps to the wedding car. These paths, of which there are more than 100, feature heavily in the locals' daily lives. Old people bask in the sunlight on the steps, chatting all day long, while children use them as a playground, climbing around and playing football.

In Qingdao, grooms can find it physically demanding to carry their brides to their wedding cars, especially if she lives near the longest path, which has 132 steps and is about 200 m long. Any man facing such a feat will need to get acquainted with a gym.

Because of the changing terrain, each of the paths is unique. Some are wide, (with the widest 6.8 m) and some are narrow (with the narrowest less than 1 m). Some have gentle slopes while others are very steep. The steepest is at an almost 70-degree angle.

Some are straight while many others have different shapes. Some lie under a bridge and some are hidden by buildings.

Because the stepped paths are broken up by flat segments, almost all visitors find it easy to finish their walks.

"These gently-advancing steps make it easy to reach the top of the hills," says a tourist from Sichuan province.

On both sides of the paths visitors can see European architecture dating back to when the city was a German outpost.

Among these buildings stand the former residences of famous Chinese cultural figures such as Liang Shiqiu, Lao She and Shen Congwen.

Nowadays Qingdao is a modern city and a hot tourist destination. After enjoying the sunset on the beach and delicious seafood in the restaurants, don't forget to take a walk on the stone steps. Only then will you get a complete picture of the city and its people.

-from Chinadaily.com.cn