Chinese people take great pleasure from the company of song birds.

These birdcages are handcrafted out of bamboo and some are decorated with intricate carving and tiny hand painted porcelain feeding bowls.

Men went out for walks with their pet birds, it was a custom passed on from generation to generation.

Even today, male retirees have a particular fondness for keeping birds and an old man with a trolley full of birdcages, taking his pets out for a walk, is a common site in Chinese streets and parks.

On festive occasions, people in the city often go to temples or to places with ponds and gardens to breathe the fresh air, taking their birds with them.