A city written in verse

The initiative extends beyond the three parks, with plans to develop Tang poetry scenic routes connecting historic sites and natural landscapes on the outskirts of the city. But for residents and tourists alike, the most immediate change is the way poetry has seeped into the urban texture. Streetlamps display poetic couplets, interactive performers duel with passersby in spontaneous verse, and the city's very walls murmur with the voices of Li Bai, Du Fu, and generations of poets who once called this place home.

In Xi'an, where the past is always present, the verses of the Tang are no longer confined to books. Its verses now live in the city's streets, lights, and shadows.