Kuan Alley and Zhai Alley

The low, dark gray tile roofs and intricate wooden lattice windows of Kuan and Zhai Alleys mark the final preserved remnant of the Manchu military garrison from the Qing Dynasty. While the rest of Chengdu modernized, this district remained frozen in the layout soldiers built in seventeen eighteen. General Fuchuan once lived in these courtyards, maintaining strict discipline among his troops. Today, the alleys are quiet walkways lined with tea houses, where the city once kept watch over its own defenses.