Here in China, while the north is often dry and hot, the southern regions usually steamy in humid summer heat that some call "sauna weather." One such place is Macao, across the Pearl River Delta from Hong Kong, where there's a big demand for "Liangcha," or "cooling herbal tea." The highly popular beverage provides a soothing and comforting healing power. But where does that healing power come from?
In Macao, people tend to go for a sip of cooling herbal tea to ease the heat in summer.
But what you may not know is that, the beloved beverage is made with ingredients from traditional Chinese medicine (TCM).
The popularity of the teas has stirred people's curiosity in Macao to find out more about the ancient herbs.
More and more young people born and raised in the city are starting to find their passion in this field, and choosing to learn more about it in Beijing.
And they're finding that TCM is basically everywhere in their daily lives.
Beijing University of Chinese Medicine has been working closely with Macao, to help students there to dig a little deeper into this field.
One of the teachers notes a major change over recent years: "During our admission consultations every year, students or parents used to ask us very basic questions such as what courses were available, or whether there were western medicine courses. But now the questions are getting more and more detailed. Like whether they can get jobs in the mainland after graduation, or how to take exams for TCM practice certificates. I think this change shows that students from Macao are getting to know more about the mainland and Chinese medicine."
As a city which has long been dependent on tourism, Macao has now morphed into a hot spot for work on TCM.
In 2011, Macao and neighboring Guangdong Province co-established a 500,000-square-meter traditional Chinese medicine science and technology park in Macao's Hengqin New Area.
By April this year, 134 enterprises had registered in the park. And the project has also attracted a number of overseas business groups, mainly from Portuguese-speaking countries.
With its extensive international connections, the park has become a gateway for the promotion of TCM on the global stage.