We went to Chengdu

Chengdu was where my wife and I spent our honeymoon. We used the city as a base to explore the immediate area around this relatively clean city, visit an old friend of my wife's, and make new friends.

First of all, from a tourist point of view, the number one place to visit has to be the Chengdu Panda Base which I’m going to discuss further in a separate post. I’m making the point here because if you go there for only one thing, it should be to see the pandas.

Chengdu (成都市) is one of the most populous cities in Western China and is the capital of the Sichuan province (四川省). The surrounding area is known as the Land of Abundance due to the fertile grounds and warm humid weather in this region. Chengdu has had an illustrious past, serving as a national capital city at various stages in the past, the last time being in 1937 during the fall of Nanjing to the Japanese.

Our hotel (Jiali Hotel, which averages at around £20/night) was a relatively simple, yet perfectly clean and comfortable establishment in a central location, very close to the Sichuan Science and Technology Museum (四川科技馆). A simple breakfast of bread, milk, and a processed meat snack were included in the room rate. The hotel included a games room of sorts which seemed to attract older groups of people for games of Mahjong or Go.

For those wanting to partake in some light exercise at the end of a long day, regular groups of open-air dancing and stretching can be found on most evenings in the large open space at the rear of the Science & Technology museum, which is essentially over the road from the Jiali Hotel.

SICHUAN AND THAT FABULOUS FOOD

Being the capital of Sichuan, it will come as little surprise that this place has some pretty spectacular food choices, most of which are spicy, which I loved, but may concern some with slightly more sensitive stomachs. Long before I had visited China for the first time, I had been aware of the Sichuan peppers (花椒 huā jiāo) as a source of spice in many Chinese dishes, so I had some expectations when I arrived. My expectations were not far from the mark, however, it should be noted that the fantastic food choices in Chengdu extend far beyond the Sichuan pepper-infused dishes and, in all fairness, you will find foods that cater for all, including those that have an aversion to spicy foods, without too much effort on your part.

Our first dish was Hot Pot (huǒ guō, 火锅) with friends at the Ba Shu Zai Hot Pot (巴蜀崽火锅) restaurant which I would highly recommend. For those of you that have had hotpot in Northern China, you may well find that the Sichuanese version is probably hotter and is often distinguished from its milder cousin with the addition of Má là （麻辣）as in Má là huǒ guō（麻辣火锅） (spicy hotpot).

JIN LI STREET & SHOPPING, SHOPPING, SHOPPING

When in Chengdu, you absolutely have to visit Jin Li Street. Here you’ll find bars, restaurants, shops, and of course, KTV. This is a glimpse into a more traditional shopping experience, although, take it at face value only.

This is a very busy, very popular, and rather picturesque area, it has to be worth a walk around. In fact, I’d suggest two visits, one in the daytime and another at night when all the lanterns are lit up. However, its sole purpose is to suck tourists in. It is enjoyable, it is worth going, but what looks traditional and ‘old world’ from the outside is a facade for a collection of outlets looking to sell local trinkets with a bit of a mark-up to cover the inflated rents for what is a prime selling place if your target customers are tourists. In short, anything you buy here will, invariably, be more expensive than the same item from elsewhere in Chengdu. But you should still go.

This is a major city, a provincial capital, a city with a wealth of history in a country with one of the fastest-growing economies in the world. For those that want to shop, you’ll find most things here.

One of the surprises that some westerners might have when they first visit Communist China is just how Capitalist it actually is. This country has embraced marketing and selling like no other that I’ve visited so far. Chengdu has embraced that attitude with open arms. As such you will find vast expansive shopping districts and even underground shopping malls that will cater to your every need.

No matter what your budget is, you will find something that meets your requirement, from the local brands through to the internationally recognized brands, everything in the middle, and plenty of knock-offs. One example might be New Balance, you will find an array of shops that sell New Balance genuine stock, outright fakes, and local copies that are attempting to cash in on a global super brand with a somewhat similar, yet slightly different, name and logo.

CHENGDU CITY-SCAPE

I love cityscapes, I’m an amateur photographer and I’ve snapped most things, but cities are my favorite. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t like to see a scarred landscape, I don’t like to see the negative effects of a city on the surrounding area, with the roads, rail links, landfill sites, and whatnot, but to see the buildings, to see how architects and designers have competed for the tallest, or most beautiful, or perhaps even the ugliest buildings fascinates me.

Chengdu offered me many options to enjoy this aspect of my photography. The city is vast, at times it feels as though it stretches as high as it does wide, there are imposing buildings everywhere, some are obscure, some are strangely beautiful, some are odd of course, and you’ll always find an ugly duckling.

When it comes to food, mostly we loved the street food found in the Wide & Narrow Lanes (Kuan Xiangzi and Zhai Xiangzi). Here you’ll find restaurants, shops, tea houses, bars, and even a couple of art galleries. Again, all budgets are covered for. Personally, I love the street food. It’s cheap, fresh, tasty, and mostly I had no idea what it was, either before, during, or after I ate it… In some cases, I’m probably quite happy that I don’t know what I ate. All I can say is be brave and try anything that looks popular with the locals.

BUDDHIST TEMPLE

Wenshu yuan (文殊院) is an active Buddhist monastery and temple, found just to the north of the city center. This is a very beautiful and very peaceful part of Chengdu, an escape from the hustle and bustle, the traffic, the shopping, and most of the other tourists.

Entry is free, there are no requirements to show your ID or to have your bags checked. This is an active temple and therefore you should be expected to keep the noise down. This is peaceful for a reason, so if there is a large group of you, you might want to split up into smaller parties or try to keep your voices down. Photography is perhaps not encouraged, but mostly allowed with the exception of snapping the Buddhist statues, monks, or worshippers. I did see many people ignoring that notice, both Chinese and foreigners. Generally, they were left alone, only occasionally might someone come over and direct the photographer's attention to a sign asking people not to photograph monks and worshippers, etc.

You can easily waste half a day in this place, in fact, I could spend a whole day there if I’d had more time in Chengdu. The summer is especially nice and you can expect to see locals sitting with their feet in the grounds’ ponds to help them cool off in the scorching Sichuan heat.

As soon as you exit WenShu, head straight for the eateries over the road. Places that should be at the top of your list include [Shaocheng Xiaocan](https://www.google.co.uk/maps/place/Shaocheng+Xiaocan

/@30.6735912,104.0725881,19z/data=!4m14!1m8!3m7!1s0x0:0x511bb9fc18644f3e!2sWenshuyuan!8m2!3d30.6749149!4d104.0720889!9m1!1b1!3m4!1s0x0:0x97ff3a0c4cfac6e2!8m2!3d30.6738566!4d104.0725181) (少城小餐) for everything they sell and to a little street stall that sells something called San Da Pao (三大炮) which is my favorite sweet snack in Chengdu. 三大炮 is a glutinous rice ball, similar to a warm Mochi, dipped in bean flour, and served with a hot brown syrup. It’s cheap, sweet, delicious, and absolutely not diet friendly.