Wu Qingwen, a rock climbing enthusiast, rock climbs at a climbing gym in Chengdu, Sichuan province, on July 24. XU BINGJIE/XINHUA
On a Tuesday evening in Beijing's Chaoyang district, the air inside Bloc1 Climbing Gym is filled with the rhythmic "thwack" of rubber-soled shoes hitting textured fiberglass and the sharp exhales of exertion from urbanites trading their office stress for a gravity-defying puzzle.
Amid the neon-lit bouldering routes, 29-year-old marketing executive Chen Liting is clinging to a sequence of lime-green holds, her brow furrowed in concentration.
"Two years ago, I would have been at a happy hour bar," she said.
"Now, this is my social club. It's cheaper than a therapist, more exciting than a treadmill, and the community is far more genuine than a networking event."
