Mahjong is considered the most popular leisure activity in Chengdu, more important than other pastimes such as badminton and ping-pong. Around town, people of all ages play the game in parks, teahouses and public squares. Friends and family chat over the tables while business people often negotiate deals. Your experience starts at your Chengdu hotel, where you'll meet your private guide who accompanies you by metro or taxi to a local teahouse. After getting seated with a cup of tea, your guide sets up the Mahjong game and begins your private lesson on how to play. Mahjong has some similarities to the card game rummy, in that it requires skill, strategy, memory and luck. Learn the rules and practice basic skills with your guide, and then you have a chance to play a game with the locals at the teahouse, if you’d like. At the end of your lesson, your guide will help you get a taxi back to your hotel or next destination (own expense).