My Trip to Chengdu

Last summer, I had an independent trip to Chengdu for three days. It was the first time that I travelled all by myself. Motivated by the belief of YOLO (you only live once), I decided to try something new. Packing, and taking a train, I left Guangzhou. 30 hours later, the trip started!

The Youth Hostel, called No.4 Factory, was well-equipped and human-centered. It provided all travellers with a public lounge room to converse with each other. I felt comfortable and warm there and I also knew some friends who shared different travelling stories. How fantastic it was when people from different places shared their unique experience together!

The Youth Hostel, at night

The first site I visited was Kuanzhai Alleys, one of the conservation districts of historical sites. It was exciting to learn more about Chengdu’s history here, especially the traditional food! I very much enjoyed the glutinous rice balls, called San Da Pao, which were covered with bean flour by being thrown fiercely, and the sweet-and-sour sauce flavor.

Kuanzhai Alleys

Later, I toured Jinli Ancient Street, one of the most prosperous streets in the west of Shu in the Three Kingdoms Period. However, I was a little disappointed by the lack of unique products, as everything was very familiar to those I had seen elsewhere, and I quickly ran out of patience. Suddenly, this struck me with a sense of concern. In fact, it seemed a sad truth that many traditional ancient towns or alleys of different areas in China are becoming more commercial and selling more identical artifacts.

Jinli Ancient Street

The next day, I visited the Cottage of Du Fu, a great ancient poet from the Tang Dynasty. Although the cottage was not the original one, I loved the environment around the cottage for its quietness and pureness. Also, I learned more about this poet by renting an audio-guide. Du Fu settled in Chengdu for four years during the war (An Lushan Rebellion) and wrote many famous poems in this run-down cottage. He lived an extremely poor life but he still worried about the fate of his country and those desperate civilians. I admired his patriotism.

The Living Room of Du Fu’s Cottage

On the last day, I went to see the Irrigation System of Dujiangyan and climbed up to Yulei Guan. This irrigation system made great contributions to protect the people in Sichuan from floods. And I had the opportunity to appreciate how powerful yet adorable the nature was, looking down from the top of Yulei Guan.

Dujiangyan, From the top of Yulei Guan

Yulei Guan

One thing I would like to emphasize is the noodles of Chengdu. The noodles there are very elastic and the seasoning contains various kinds of ingredients, including local pepper and chili. I was highly crazy about those noodles for every bite of them stimulated my taste buds and refreshed my spirits.

The Noodles

All in all, Chengdu is not only an epitome of cultural heritage, but also a good place to feel relaxed. Since people of Chengdu are hospitable and live in relaxed lives, you will feel warm there and eacape the pressure from our fast-paced lives.