​A wooden boardwalk winds its way around the artificial lake that contains the Minghua, a vintage cruise liner, at Shekou’s famous lifestyle plaza.

One of Shenzhen’s older skyscrapers, this 384-meter office tower was Asia’s tallest building when it topped out in the mid-1990s. Built at the rate of four floors every nine days and completed in just 40 months, it was a widely touted exemplar of “Shenzhen speed.”

Overlooked by the thousands of shoppers on this busy Luohu street is a former clan guildhall, which sometimes has gallery exhibits inside.

This cafe, which offers expertly-made coffees, delicious cookies and desserts, doubles as a tiny coffee-themed museum with interesting exhibits that include exquisite Turkish coffee utensils and a 1920s European bean grinder.