“Want to understand Chinese food? Don’t start in a restaurant. Start in a market.” We Didn’t Expect a Morning Market to Become One of the Highlights of Chengdu When people think about Chengdu, they usually picture giant pandas, spicy hotpot and the famous giant panda climbing the IFS shopping mall. Those places are wonderful. But they don’t necessarily tell you how Chengdu actually lives. Elaine and I have developed a little travel habit...
Ask almost anyone planning their first trip to Chengdu (成都, Chéngdū) and you’ll hear the same list. See the giant pandas. Eat hotpot. Visit 宽窄巷子 (Kuānzhǎi Xiàngzi). Walk 春熙路 (Chūnxī Lù, Chunxi Road). Take a selfie with the famous panda climbing out of the IFS shopping mall. We did all that too. But strangely enough… One of my favourite memories of Chengdu wasn’t any famous attraction. It was simply walking back to our homestay every evening through Jinniu District...
“Sometimes the city that changes your understanding of a country isn’t the one you planned to visit most.” If you’ve been reading ChinaTravelBug, you’ll probably notice something. We write a lot about Beijing (北京, Běijīng). We write even more about Xi’an (西安, Xī’ān). Those two cities have become the anchors of our China journeys. Beijing tells the story of imperial China, while Xi’an takes us back to where many chapters of Chinese civilisation first began....
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