Hankou's surviving lifen lanes, and the breakfast that still runs through them

Shanghai has its lilong. Hankou, the old riverside half of Wuhan, has the lifen (里分, lǐfēn): rows of brick-and-stone terraces built in the early twentieth century for merchants, clerks and dock workers. Many are gone. The ones still standing are still lived in, and the best way to see them is early, on foot, with breakfast in hand.

What a lifen looks like

A lifen is a gated lane leading off a main street. You enter through an arch with the lane's name carved above it. Inside, two-storey houses share walls and stone door frames, and narrow back alleys carry laundry poles strung overhead. The style borrows from Shanghai's shikumen, but the brick is often darker and the lanes are shorter, so a whole lane can be walked in a few minutes.

Where to walk

Start on Shengli Street (胜利街, Shènglì Jiē) and Dongting Street (洞庭街, Dòngtíng Jiē), in the old concession district near the Yangtze, then cut inland toward Jianghan Road. Some lanes, such as Tongxingli (同兴里, Tóngxīng Lǐ), have been restored and now hold cafés and small studios. They are pleasant, and they make a useful contrast with what is nearby.

In the quieter lanes around them, bicycles lean in the doorways, neighbours share outdoor taps, and older residents play cards on folding stools. Walk slowly and keep your voice down, as you would in any residential courtyard. If you want to photograph someone, ask first, and if a door is open, don't take that as an invitation to go in.

汉口的里分不是景点，是有人住的家。

Go for guòzǎo

In Wuhan, eating breakfast is called guòzǎo (过早), literally "passing the morning", and people eat it standing up or on low stools on the pavement. Reganmian (热干面, rè gān miàn) is hot-dry noodles tossed in sesame paste, and the stalls around the lanes sell it for a few yuan. Doupi (豆皮, dòupí) is a pan-fried slab of sticky rice wrapped in tofu skin, and it is worth the wait when there is a queue.

By nine the lanes go quiet again, and Jianghan Road metro station is a short walk away. The best months to visit are April, May, October and November. Wuhan summers are punishing, and by midday the lanes are empty for a reason.