Took bus 52 to the new tourist bus station and switch to bus 902

to the Chengdu research base of giant pandas.

The panda breeding center is around 15km away from the city and took around an hour to get there. It cost 59Yuan~USD$7.5 to get in and doesn’t have student discount.

The giant panda is considered one of the most famous endangered animal and the place is home to some 60 giant pandas. The research base is also one of the biggest facility of its kind (100 hectares, expanding to 200 hectares) to research about Panda.

Skeleton of a panda.

Red Panda

I wasn’t able to find Mix hostel yesterday because I didn’t bring the address. Visited Mix hostel which is another popular place for backpackers at around WenShuYuan just for comparison.

People in Chengdu love drinking tea and chilling.

JinLi road.

This neighborhood is part of the old city of Chengdu. It features hotels and small stores in old-fashioned style. All kinds of souvenirs, antiques and food are sold in the many number of stores.

I was planning to take the 9.43pm train to Chongqing. Got to the train station at 9.25pm but the attendant mentioned that it’s too late to get on the train. There are express trains that are slightly more expensive so I decided to get to ChongQing the next morning and spent a night at the internet cafe.

Tea ceremony

Brunch (Rice with Beef, Sichuan Style, 7 Yuan~USD$1)

Like most other provincial capital in the country, Chengdu is also building subway lines.

6 lines are planned and the first line will be completed end of 2010.

Walked to the SiChuan provincial museum.

Inside the museum

Exhibition about Tibetan history

Banner of the communist about taking down the city Nanjing and catching Chiang Kai Shek.

RenMin Park

Advertisment put up by the older generation about the availability of their sons and daughters

Sichuan university

Fitness center

Walked around WenShuYuan area. This is a Tang Dynasty Buddhist temple.

Lan brought me to Wanda Plaza which is located at the south east part of Chengdu to check out one of the bigger shopping mall here.

A cute Chinese girl behind me kept pulling my hair during the journey.

Got to Chengdu North bus station at around 2pm after a 25 hours bus ride. Got on bus 54 to Dragon town hostel (45Yuan~USD$7).

Chengdu is the provincial capital of Sichuan province and is famous for its laid back and carefree lifestyle. It’s ranked as one of the most livable place in China with good quality of life. There are many tea houses in the city where the locals can take time off to relax.

Chengdu has a long history. During the 4th century BC, the Kingdom of Shu moved its capital to the city. During the civil war between Kuomintang and the communist party, Chengdu is the last city to be “liberated” and many of the Kuomintang members fled to Taiwan. So there is a number of WaiShengRen in Taiwan are from SiChuan province. The city has the lowest exposure to sunshine among cities in China and most days, it’s cloudy.

The city is the major center in SouthWest China and has a strong economy. It’s established as the base for electronic and IT industry. Intel has a big presence here.

The hostel is located right at KuanZaiXiang, which is

(6 Yuan~USD$1)

There are many motorbikes in Chengdu.

Tian Fu Square. overlooked by an enormous Chairman Mao statue.

ChunXiLu, a pedestrian shopping street.

There is a saying that girls in Sichuan province are the most beautiful. A statue of a cameraman taking photos of some girls shopping at ChunXiLu.

Went to a mall and saw that many overseas goods are quite expensive. For example, this Clark shoe is quite expensive. Many overseas goods in China are taxed at a much higher rate than most countries.

NiuRouLaMian, beef noodles Sichuan style (6 Yuan~USD$1). Sichuan style has a lot of oil and is always spicy.

ChengDu has a few bar street. Went to the one located at JiuYanQiao, around Sichuan University with Phoebe, a hostel mate.

Mu Clan association of the Naxi people.

Lijiang old town

Got on the 1pm bus towards Chengdu (297Yuan~USD$45, around 900km).


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There were a few options to Chengdu. Another way is to take a bus to PanZhiHua (7 hours ride), then got on the train to Chengdu (12-13hours). There is also a flight costing 350Yuan which departs on Friday night.

The road from Yunnan to Sichuan passed by many mountains. View on the way