"I'm impressed with parents and their children visiting the Sanxingdui Museum," he said. "They show their respect for history, too."

EJ Allen Patton from the University of Hawaii showed his passion for China by wearing a T-shirt with Chinese words about Taoism. Patton's fluent Mandarin and knowledge of Chinese history and culture surprised many locals.

A diner at a restaurant in Chengdu was shocked to learn that Patton's dissertation for his PhD degree is about Zhang Lan (1872-1955), the former vice-chairman of the Central People's Government, who was from Xichong county in Sichuan.

"Not many people in Sichuan know Zhang Lan," the middle-aged diner said.