CHENGDE, a small country town 250km northeast of Beijing, sits in a river basin on the west bank of the Wulie River, surrounded by the Yunshan mountain range. It's a quiet, unimportant place, rather bland in appearance, but on its outskirts are remnants from its glory days as the summer retreat of the Manchu emperors - these include some of the most magnificent examples of imperial architecture in China. Gorgeous temples punctuate the cabbage fields around town, and a palace-and-park complex (known as the mountain resort) covers an area nearly as large as the town itself. In recent years it has once more become a summer haven, filling up at weekends with Beijingers escaping the hassles of the capital.