九眼桥

About this audio guide

This guide to Jiuyan Bridge in Chengdu traces the site's shift from a Ming-era river dock to today's nightlife strip, opening with the annual dragon boat races that once packed both rails above the Jinjiang River. It follows the bridge's construction in 1593 under the Ming official Yu Yilong, the nine stone arches that gave it its name, and three centuries as Chengdu's busiest cargo dock loaded with rice and silk. By some local accounts, the boldest swimmers even dove into the river to chase ducks that the crowd flung in as prizes.