Chengdu: A city of never-say goodbye
成都：一个一来了也就不要离开的地方
So goes the official slogan for the capital of Sichuan, soon to be replaced by "Chengdu: City of Pandas" or "Chengdu: Eden of the East" or some such other nonsensical slogan, if the market research survey questionnaire I was asked to fill in is anything to go by. Allegedly, the province of Sichuan has more visitors each year than the entire United States. Most of these are from Asia, making Sichuan relatively unknown to Western travellers. This, sadly, hasn't prevented a proliferation of Starbucks and Pizza Hut (which, bizarrely, was listed under "Exotic cuisine" in my hotel's Chengdu restaurant guide).
There are a few things you should know about Chengdu. It's big. Very big. It's the fifth most populous city in China, with some 11 million inhabitants. It's polluted. Very polluted. You can get up in the morning and pretend that it's winter fog, but it isn't. It's full of Chinese people (11 million of them, as I mentioned above). They spit. Everywhere. They talk really loudly. It's full of cars, mopeds and bikes (I'm guessing, about 11 million of them in all...). The taxi drivers are insane (incidentally, there are no seatbelts in taxis. In fact, they seem to make a point of taking them out, as if somehow, putting on a seatbelt detracts from the experience. They also like putting steel cages between the passengers' and driver's seats, so that, should the taxi brake suddenly, you'll invariably smash your head against a bunch of steel bars. This, of course, is nothing to worry about, as taxi drivers rarely use the brake pedal anyway, preferring to avoid obstacles by using a combination of evasive manouvering, swerving, cutting people up and stepping on the gas. Often, however, this is also unnecessary, as taxi drivers seldom feel the need to avoid oncoming traffic or pedestrians, having, as they seemingly appear to do, the unerring conviction that others will move out of the way first). You might think, then, that risking your life in a taxi is not really worth the adrenaline rush, but let me assure you that you're much better off inside a taxi than outside it...... another note for the pedestrian - do not be fooled by the green man, who merely indicates that you may attempt to cross the road with a probability of less than 1 that you'll be run over. Beyond that, your life is in your hands.
Indeed, Chengdu is not the easiest place to get around for the nouveau arrivé and, although a metro system is due to be completed in 2008, taxi is still the transport of choice for the non-electric moped-riding out-of-towner. It's also not a pretty city. It's noisy, polluted, haphazardly planned, non-pedestrian friendly, the centre's overrun by Western überbrands and it sprawls for miles. In fact, it's a typical Chinese city, with worse transport infrastructure. But, as with other Chinese cities, Chengdu possesses little spots of hidden beauty - small, preserved oases of calming order amidst the surrounding urban chaos. These include a number of temples, the thatched cottage of the poet Du Fu (which I sadly didn't get time to see), and the famed Panda research base (which is well worth a visit). Further afield are a number of must-see places (these require time and planning, so inevitably you won't get to see them all on the same trip), including the giant buddha at Leshan, carved on the face of the mountain, the Du Jiang Yan irrigation project, now a UNESCO World Heritage site, and Jiu Zhai Gou, said to be one of the most beautiful scenic places in China. The Wolong panda sanctuary is a protected site and home to the majority of the world's remaining wild panda population, although given that there are only about 1600 of them left, I'm guessing your chances of actually seeing one in the wild are pretty slim.
Of course, another reason to visit is for the famed Sichuan cuisine, which is famed for its complex flavours, combining sweetness, saltiness, sourness and spiciness all in the same mouthful, examples of which include Kungpo chicken, twice-boiled pork and Ma Po tofu.
More on the above to come, including all my culinary experiences. Chengdu: A city of never-say goodbye. Well, we did say goodbye, but will no doubt return to see all the things we missed out on this time. So perhaps the city's slogan does need changing. I would suggest "Chengdu: The city of say hello again" or, in the local lingo 成都：一个一离开也就一定要再来的地方.
So goes the official slogan for the capital of Sichuan, soon to be replaced by "Chengdu: City of Pandas" or "Chengdu: Eden of the East" or some such other nonsensical slogan, if the market research survey questionnaire I was asked to fill in is anything to go by. Allegedly, the province of Sichuan has more visitors each year than the entire United States. Most of these are from Asia, making Sichuan relatively unknown to Western travellers. This, sadly, hasn't prevented a proliferation of Starbucks and Pizza Hut (which, bizarrely, was listed under "Exotic cuisine" in my hotel's Chengdu restaurant guide).
There are a few things you should know about Chengdu. It's big. Very big. It's the fifth most populous city in China, with some 11 million inhabitants. It's polluted. Very polluted. You can get up in the morning and pretend that it's winter fog, but it isn't. It's full of Chinese people (11 million of them, as I mentioned above). They spit. Everywhere. They talk really loudly. It's full of cars, mopeds and bikes (I'm guessing, about 11 million of them in all...). The taxi drivers are insane (incidentally, there are no seatbelts in taxis. In fact, they seem to make a point of taking them out, as if somehow, putting on a seatbelt detracts from the experience. They also like putting steel cages between the passengers' and driver's seats, so that, should the taxi brake suddenly, you'll invariably smash your head against a bunch of steel bars. This, of course, is nothing to worry about, as taxi drivers rarely use the brake pedal anyway, preferring to avoid obstacles by using a combination of evasive manouvering, swerving, cutting people up and stepping on the gas. Often, however, this is also unnecessary, as taxi drivers seldom feel the need to avoid oncoming traffic or pedestrians, having, as they seemingly appear to do, the unerring conviction that others will move out of the way first). You might think, then, that risking your life in a taxi is not really worth the adrenaline rush, but let me assure you that you're much better off inside a taxi than outside it...... another note for the pedestrian - do not be fooled by the green man, who merely indicates that you may attempt to cross the road with a probability of less than 1 that you'll be run over. Beyond that, your life is in your hands.
Indeed, Chengdu is not the easiest place to get around for the nouveau arrivé and, although a metro system is due to be completed in 2008, taxi is still the transport of choice for the non-electric moped-riding out-of-towner. It's also not a pretty city. It's noisy, polluted, haphazardly planned, non-pedestrian friendly, the centre's overrun by Western überbrands and it sprawls for miles. In fact, it's a typical Chinese city, with worse transport infrastructure. But, as with other Chinese cities, Chengdu possesses little spots of hidden beauty - small, preserved oases of calming order amidst the surrounding urban chaos. These include a number of temples, the thatched cottage of the poet Du Fu (which I sadly didn't get time to see), and the famed Panda research base (which is well worth a visit). Further afield are a number of must-see places (these require time and planning, so inevitably you won't get to see them all on the same trip), including the giant buddha at Leshan, carved on the face of the mountain, the Du Jiang Yan irrigation project, now a UNESCO World Heritage site, and Jiu Zhai Gou, said to be one of the most beautiful scenic places in China. The Wolong panda sanctuary is a protected site and home to the majority of the world's remaining wild panda population, although given that there are only about 1600 of them left, I'm guessing your chances of actually seeing one in the wild are pretty slim.
Of course, another reason to visit is for the famed Sichuan cuisine, which is famed for its complex flavours, combining sweetness, saltiness, sourness and spiciness all in the same mouthful, examples of which include Kungpo chicken, twice-boiled pork and Ma Po tofu.
More on the above to come, including all my culinary experiences. Chengdu: A city of never-say goodbye. Well, we did say goodbye, but will no doubt return to see all the things we missed out on this time. So perhaps the city's slogan does need changing. I would suggest "Chengdu: The city of say hello again" or, in the local lingo 成都：一个一离开也就一定要再来的地方.
Labels: Chengdu, Du Jiang Yan, food, Jiu Zhai Gou, pandas, Sichuan, taxis
posted by CCT at 12:49 pm
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