Walking into memories

Besides being home to one of the most diverse collections of art deco architecture in the world, the city also has a comprehensive range of lifestyle amenities as well as cultural events.

One person who has braved the summer heat to tour Shanghai on foot is Gao Shan, a 25-year-old civil engineer based in Xi'an, Shaanxi province.

He says that summer is a good time for city walks because there are usually fewer crowds. The trick to staying cool, he adds, is walking under the foliage of the trees along the streets.

During a business trip in Shanghai late last month, Gao took a walk around Tongji University, his alma mater, and the Bund, with the aim of admiring the scenery and the architecture.

But not all city walks need to have an objective. The free walking tours conducted by Guo Feixiang, for example, are simply about roaming the streets with no goal in mind.

The 28-year-old has organized 16 walks in Shanghai and Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, since the start of June that were attended by a whopping 400 people.

The reason behind starting the tours, says Guo, a native of Fuyang, Anhui province, who has been working in Hangzhou for the past few years, was simply to meet new people.

"It isn't easy for non-locals like us to make friends outside of work. But through a platform like a city walk, we can do so and feel less lonely in an unfamiliar city. It could possibly also connect us with someone whom we can turn to should we need help," says Guo, who is an English teacher.