Things to do in Chángshā
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Húnán Provincial Museum
Not to be missed, this first-rate museum has fascinating exhibits from the 2100-year-old Western Han tombs of Mǎwángduī, some 5km east of the city.
The items on show allow you to get a rare handle on Western Han aesthetics – check out the astonishing expressions on the faces of some of the wooden figurines. Also excavated are more than 700 pieces of lacquerware, Han silk textiles and ancient manuscripts on silk and bamboo wooden slips, including one of the earlier versions of the Zhōuyì (Yìjīng, also called I Ching), written in formalised Han clerical script.
But the highlight is the body of the Marquess of Dai, extracted from her magnificent multilayered lacquered…
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B
Chángshā City Museum
A colossal 1968 statue of Mao – cast out of an aluminium-magnesium alloy in Hēilóngjiāng – affably greets you at the entrance to the museum's pleasant grounds. Compare his carriage – right arm raised aloft, heralding a new dawn – with that of his more demure statue erected in Sháoshān in 1993, when the reform drive had long kicked in and Mao was a demigod no more.
The statue is the first clue that this hammer and sickle–decorated museum is essentially a shrine to Chángshā's most famous adopted son, despite the paintings, ceramics and jade on display here. Check out the huge portrait of the young Mao, with shafts of light emanating from his head, which hangs…
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C
Huǒgōngdiàn (Wuyi Dadao)
Perhaps famous for its stinky dòufu (tofu; as Mao said: 'The stinky dòufu at Chángshā's Huǒgōngdiàn smells stinky, but tastes great') but there's much else here, from tasty dim sum wheeled round in carts to the excellent máoshì hóngshāoròu (毛氏红烧肉; Mao-style braised pork) and its scrummy pale green vegetable parcels, xiāngjiān sùcàibāo (香煎素菜包). There are three branches in town.
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Húnán No 1 Teachers' Training School
Mao attended classes here between 1913 and 1918; he returned to teach Chinese from 1920 to 1922. It's still a working college and if you're lucky a student keen to practise their English will show you around the place, including Mao's dormitory, his old classrooms, halls where he held some of his first political meetings and an open-air well where he enjoyed taking cold baths. Otherwise, there are a few English captions. Take bus 1 from the train station.
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Hunan CPC Committee
It is the former site of Mao's living quarters and includes photos and historical items from the 1920s, along with a wall where Mao's poems are on view. A small and fun antiques market materialises at the museum gate on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
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Huǒgōngdiàn
There's a great buzz at this landmark Chángshā restaurant – Mao was a fan of its stinky dòufu (tofu). A huge selection of steaming dim sum–style dishes are wheeled around by ladies who like to tempt foreigners into trying such delights as chicken feet. Make sure to order the excellent máoshì hóngshāoròu (毛氏红烧肉; Mao-style braised pork; Y48) off the menu. There's a less atmospheric branch near the train station at 93 Wuyi Dadao (call (8412 0580).
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Yuelu Academy
Hunan University (Húnán Dàxué) evolved from the site of the Yuelu Academy, which was established during the Song dynasty for scholars to prepare for civil examinations.
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Xīnhuá Lóu
This long-time favourite is a can't-miss option for local dishes; harried middle-aged ladies wheel around trolleys of cold and hot dishes for patrons to pick and choose. It also does great noodles (from Y7). Another branch is across the way at 108 Wuyi Dadao.
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Yuelu Park
This park (yuèlù gōngyuán), at the bottom of the High Mountain Park, is one of Changsha's most historic spots and is a pleasant place to visit.
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Tiānxīn Gé
The only remaining part of the old city walls is a popular place to escape the summer heat. It's off Chengnan Xilu. Catch bus 212 from the train station.
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Sun River Dumpling Restaurant
Need a break from chewing chillis? If so, then try this big, bustling place that specialises in the far less fiery cuisine of northern China. Dumplings (jiǎozi) are the house speciality, and there are seemingly endless varieties, including vegie options, on offer. The picture menu has many other dishes to choose from too.
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