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SCMP

We have selected seven lifestyle stories from the past seven days that resonated with our readers. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing.
1. Saunas, sure. But sleep? A couple stays overnight at a 24-hour spa in Shenzhen
A writer and her husband visit Shenzhen’s Tenz spa to see what it offers besides massages and how easy it is to get a good night’s rest there
2. Photographer’s snaps of 1970s Hong Kong given life by grandson 5 decades on
During the Christmas holiday in 2021, Jack Smith discovered a collection of surgical equipment boxes in the garage of his childhood home near London. The boxes contained around 80,000 35mm film slides taken by his late grandfather Herbert Smith as he travelled around the world between 1945 and 1987, including to Hong Kong in 1979.
3. What to eat in China’s Chengdu, from fiery hotpot to the original mapo tofu

A reflection of Sichuan’s diverse flavours and culinary heritage, Chengdu’s food and drinks scene rewards the adventurous.
4. She rejected her Chinese heritage as a child. Now, she writes about it
Growing up in the suburbs of Glasgow as one of only two Chinese children in her primary school, Eliza Chan rarely questioned her identity. Although her thick Scottish accent is the first thing you would notice about her, she says it was simply “normal” to be stopped on the street in her small town and asked where she was really from.
5. The difference between ‘good’ and ‘bad’ stress and how to beat the harmful kind
Stress is almost always cast in a negative light. But in the world of psychology, stress can also be positive. That “good” type is eustress, the productive spark that sharpens our focus. The “bad” type is distress, the stress that leaves us drained.
6. Who is Cha Eun-woo, K-pop idol starring in Netflix K-drama The Wonderfools?

Cha Eun-woo fans had to temporarily bid farewell to their beloved idol in July 2025, when he began his obligatory military service. Fortunately, the star completed one show before heading off to the barracks – the superhero comedy-drama The Wonderfools, which launched worldwide on May 15.
7. Is the Year of the Horse’s fourth month lucky for you? Forecasts for all signs

There will be a dynamic interplay of the five elements – metal, wood, water, fire and earth – in the fourth lunar month of the Year of the Horse 2026. As the fire element intensifies, it will both empower and challenge.


Shenzhen’s 24-hour spa, a glimpse of 1970s Hong Kong: 7 Lifestyle highlights

Xi’s back-to-back meetings with Trump and Putin in Beijing: everything you need to know

Omega-3 could hurt the brain, China scores rare-earth find: 7 science highlights

Xi-Putin meeting: everything you need to know from the talks in Beijing

SCMP Highlights

Wild mushroom tofu with guokui, or crispy flatbread, at Mi Xun Teahouse. Photo: Mi Xun Teahouse

The Himalayan salt room is just one of the relaxing features at Tangqi Tangquan Life Tenz spa in Shenzhen, where a Hong Kong couple spent the night to see what else is on offer besides massages and pools. Photo: Ginny Wong

Fei yi mao xue wang – silken duck blood curd and snappy tripe in a broth dense with chillies and peppercorns – at Chengdu’s Taolin Restaurant is a bold take on a Chongqing classic. Photo: Pin Yen Tan

Cha Eun-woo as socially awkward civil servant Lee Un-jeong in a still from the Netflix K-drama The Wonderfools. The K-pop heartthrob and actor has worked hard to become a household name in South Korea over the past decade. Photo: Netflix

How’s your luck in the Year of the Horse’s fourth month? Feng shui master Andrew Kwan gives his predictions for all 12 Chinese zodiac animal signs. Photo: Shutterstock

China’s Silk Road Express, best things to do in Nanjing: 7 Lifestyle highlights

Fitness coach Ash Ayonote leads a group session at the Wai Man Road Playground in Sai Kung, in Hong Kong’s New Territories. Photo: Edmond So

A meal is served aboard the Silk Road Express, a luxury tourist train in China that recently started operating a new route straddling Sichuan and Yunnan provinces. Photo: Courtesy of Train of Glamour

Jiming Temple rises above surrounding buildings in Nanjing. The ancient city, which has served as China’s capital at various points in history, is a feast for the senses. Here’s how to spend a weekend there. Photo: Shutterstock

An array of dishes served in Cofu Chinatown’s omakase. Photo: Cofu

A photo taken by Herbert Smith during his 1979 trip to Hong Kong titled “Painting in Neon (1979)”.  Photo: Herbert Smith

Park Ji-hoon in a still from The King’s Warden.

She started with free portraits of strangers on Hong Kong streets. Then built a brand

“I want to remind people that even when you don’t feel it, you are loved,” says Cherry Yeung, the founder of Cute Soulz, which uses art to bring emotional honesty and connection to Hongkongers. Photo: JoyBeMoment


The brand’s signature character is a small, flower-like doll that Cherry Yeung calls the “Little Inner Child”. Photo: Instagram/cutesoulzzz

Indonesian artist’s Venice installation reimagines CIA-backed female guerrilla fighter

A scene from Natasha Tontey’s “The Phantom Combatants and the Metabolism of Disobedient Organs” (2026) multi-panel video installation at the Ateneo Veneto cultural institute in Venice, Italy, for the Venice Biennale. Photo: Jacopo La Forgia

A scene from Natasha Tontey’s “The Phantom Combatants and the Metabolism of Disobedient Organs” (2026). Photo: Jacopo La Forgia

A view of the installation at the Ateneo Veneto cultural institute in Venice, Italy. Photo: Jacopo La Forgia

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From the best food in China’s Chengdu to the difference between ‘good’ and ‘bad’ stress, here are seven stories from SCMP’s recent reporting


From the best food in China’s Chengdu to the difference between ‘good’ and ‘bad’ stress, here are seven stories from SCMP’s recent reporting.


Shenzhen’s 24-hour spa, a glimpse of 1970s Hong Kong: 7 Lifestyle highlights

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}From the best food in China’s Chengdu to the difference between ‘good’ and ‘bad’ stress, here are seven stories from SCMP’s recent reporting

1. Saunas, sure. But sleep? A couple stays overnight at a 24-hour spa in Shenzhen

From the best food in China’s Chengdu to the difference between ‘good’ and ‘bad’ stress, here are seven stories from SCMP’s recent reporting