Back in fashion

Wang Chen, a young man from Xi'an, realized his dream of reliving the glories of the Han and Tang dynasties at the foot of the ancient city wall. Near Shunchengxiang Alley by the southern gate of the city wall, he founded the Shuyuan Kezhan inn.

Two giant stone lions guard the crimson front gate, Terracotta Army warriors of various sizes stand in the patio, the ancient wooden chairs are clean but broken in parts, to add ambience.

Having being a senior staffer at local high-end hotels, Wang makes sure visitors enjoy the best quality of service. He invited coffee masters to train the staff and even the youngest waitress can paint some 20 patterns on a cup of capuccino - the most popular is of a Kungfu Panda.