Lifestyle

It is local addage that Hunan only has two seasons - Winter and Summer. Summer is hot with high humidity and the winter is mildly cold and wet.

As a visitor if you don't speak Chinese it is not too difficult to communicate. A lot of pointing and acting out things should see you through at first. You are also very likely to learn a lot of Chinese in the process. It is though wise to remember that the English language is used widely through-out China even among the 'locals'.

Few places in Hunan have very limited access to Western amenities, however, Changsha the capital (along with many other locations within the Hunan Province), has all you would expect. Some of these shops include; Walmart, Carrefour, and Metro.

Food

Hunan (or Xiang) cuisine consists of the cuisines of the Xiang River region, Dongting Lake and western Hunan Province in China. It is one of the Eight Great Traditions of Chinese cuisine and is well known for its spicy flavours, fresh aroma and deep colours.

Much of the food in Hunan is very cheap to buy whether at a street stall or at a restaurant

If you don't speak any Chinese, many of the menus include pictures or to help you further it is wise to get some sort of translator book or app on your phone.

Shopping

Some of the most popular shopping areas are listed below...

Wuyi Square

Wuyi Square Shopping Circle is located at the intersection of Wuyi Lu and Huangxing Lu, it is the most well-known shopping area in downtown Changsha.

Wuyi Lu

Wuyi Lu, is a main shopping thoroughfare in the central area of the city, including the West, Central and East sections. All sorts of department stores, malls and supermarkets, hotels, restaurants are situated here. In the middle of Wuyi Lu is the Aijialing Shopping Circle, which includes the Friendship Store and Apollo Shopping City.

Huangxing Nanlu

The area known as Huangxing Nanlu Walking Street is a new shopping, leisure, dining and tourist centre based around a century-old Changsha street. It consists of three parts, a walking Street, indoor stores and an elaborately designed garden & entertainment square. Activities are numerous and varied - such as street hip-pop dances, magic shows, music performances and acrobatic shows.

Dongtang Shopping

In the southern part of the city near Furong Nanlu, there is another shopping circle near Dongtang with a landmark shopping centre called the Golden Family World Classic. Clothes stores, friendship stores, electronic appliance outlets and other supermarkets are scattered throughout this area.