Savoring life in the slow lane

EDITOR's Note: "Home & Away" is a section about the life experiences of expats living outside of the major metropolises like Beijing and Shanghai. If you are such an expat and have an interesting story to share, please send an e-mail to expat@chinadaily.com.cn.

Building earthquake-resistant houses by day and a vocal-performance career by night, Angela Renzetti is discovering the spice of life in Chengdu - a city celebrated for its fiery food and mild manners.

The 26-year-old American has lived in Sichuan's provincial capital - a place she calls "laidback, gray and spicy" - for two years. The monitoring and evaluations officer for Build Change in Sichuan, who rises around dawn for NGO work and takes the mike onstage after dusk, says both sides of her life in the city are rewarding and fun.