Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China
Chengdu, the capital of China's southwest Sichuan Province, is famed for
being the home of cute giant pandas. Located in the west of Sichuan Basin and in
the center of Chengdu Plain, the city covers a total area of 12.3 thousand
square kilometres (4,749 square miles) with a population of over 11 million.
Benefiting from Dujiangyan Irrigation Project which was constructed in 256 B.C.,
Sichuan Province is reputed as the Heavenly State, Tian Fu Zhi Guo in Chinese,
literally a place richly endowed with natural resources. Chengdu, as the
capital, is extremely productive. The Min and Tuo Rivers, two branches of the
Yangtze River, connected to 40 other rivers, supply an irrigation area of more
than 700 square kilometres (270.27 square miles) with 150-180 million kilowatts
of water. Consisting of abundant mineral resources, the land is extremely
fertile.
Chengdu Weather
Chengdu weather is mild and humid all year round, featuring four
clear-cut seasons – short and warm spring, long and sultry summer, cool
and rainy autumn, and cold and foggy winter. The distinctive
characteristics of Chengdu climate is fog and humidity. There are fewer
hours of sunlight per day, and the summer is hotter and the winter is
colder than the temperature shows.
August weather is hot and stuffy in Chengdu. The temperature is the same
as in July with an average high temperature of 30°C (86°F). The heavy
rains are concentrated in July and August, which may cause inconvenience
for your trip. When it isn't raining, the city is usually cloudy,
but the weather can be scorching on rare sunny days.
We recommend general summer clothes such as shorts, T-shirts and skirts
for August. Sport sandals are a good choice for the summer climate in
Chengdu in August. Besides, an umbrella or raincoat, sunglasses, sun
cream, and sun hat are also necessary. Pack a thin coat for visiting the
mountainous areas.
Chengdu Transportation
Air:
The transportation network in Chengdu is very developed. It has one of
China’s busiest airports; it is the intersection point of five trunk
railway lines; it is connected with thousands of miles of expressways
and has dozens of coach stations sending passengers to various
destinations. Within the city area, there are subways, city buses, taxis
and many other transport conveniences for passengers to choose from.
Shuangliu International Airport (CTU),
in the southwest of the city. Located about 16 kilometers (10 miles)
from the city center, it is the largest aviation hub in central and
western China, and aims to form the national aviation hub in mainland
China. It has flights to more than 220 domestic cities and over
130 international cities. Frequent one-hour flights are available to
Kunming, capital of Yunnan Province. Flights to Xining, capital of
Qinghai Province, take about one and a half hours, with two-hour flights
available to Lhasa, capital of Tibet. It is convenient to visit the
Jiuzhaigou Scenic Spot by air, a 40-minute flight from CTU to Jiuhuang
(Jiuzhaigou and Huanglong) Airport with
one-way full fare of CNY 980, excluding departure tax and fuel
surcharge. Visitors are advised to book flights early for this popular
trip. Discounts may be available through hotels or travel agencies.
Chengdu Tianfu
International Airport around
51.5 kilometers (32 miles) away from downtown Chengdu. Now, passengers
can fly to Chengdu Shuangliu Airport and then take airport shuttle bus
and city bus to travel between the airport and downtown Chengdu.
Train:
As the largest railway hub in southwest China, the city has convenient
railway transportation. At present, it has three railway stations for
passenger transport: Chengdu
Railway Station,
namely North Railway station, East
Railway Station,
and South
Railway Station. Another
passenger railway station, west railway station is now under
construction. When completed, the “two principals (north and east
railway stations), two assistants (south and west railway stations)”
setup of the city's rail transport will be formed and better service
passengers.
Metro:
Currently, Chengdu metro line
1, line
2, line
3, line
4, line
5, line
6, line
7, line
8, line
9, line
10, line
17 and line
18 are
in operation. Passengers can take line 1 from Weijianian to Science
City via North Railway Station, Tianfu
Square,
Sichuan Gymnasium, South Railway Station, Jincheng Plaza and other
places in the city. Line 2 can take travelers to Chadianzi Bus Station, People's
Park, Chunxi
Road,
East Railway Station, Institute of Public Administration and other
areas. Line 3 runs between Taipingyuan and Military General Hospital,
passing Chunxi Road, Chengdu
Zoo, Xinnanmen
Bus Station and Zhaojue
Temple.
Line 4 connects Xihe and Wansheng, passing some popular scenic areas
like Wide
and Narrow Alley, Sichuan
Museum and
Cultural Park. Linking Huagui Road and Huilong, metro line 5 totall has
41 stations stretching around 49 kilometers. Line 6 links Wanggongci and
Lanjiagou, covering Southwest Jiaotong University and Renmin Road North.
Line 7 passes South Railway Station, East Railway Station and North City
Bus Station with the duration of 66 minutes. Line 8 travels between
Lianhua and Shilidian. Line 9 connects Huangtianba and Financial City
East via 13 stations. Chengdu metro line 10 links Taipingyuan and
Xinping, passing Terminal 1 & Terminal 2 of Shuangliu International
Airport. Line 17 links Jinxing and Jitouqiao, running in the
northwest-southeast direction. Line 18 operates between South Railway
Station and Tianfu Airport North, containg 9 stations.
In addition, Line
13, Line
19, Line
27 and Line
30 will
serve the public in the near future.
Things to do in Chengdu
Chengdu
Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, located just 10 km (6 miles)
away from downtown, the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding has been
created and imitated the natural habitat of giant pandas in order that they
might have the best possible environment for rearing and breeding.
The giant pandas are not only a Chinese national treasure but are also beloved
by people the world over. They are found only in Sichuan, Shaanxi and Gansu
provinces. In total there are fewer than 2,000, of which 70% are distributed
within the territory of Sichuan Province. Therefore, when visitors from home and
abroad come to Chengdu, Sichuan, one of their main objectives will be to see
this lovely animal for themselves.
Wuhou
Temple (Wu Hou Shrine Temple of Marquis), is dedicated to Zhuge
Liang, the Marquis Wu (Wuhou) of the Kingdom of Shu in the Three Kingdoms Period
(220 - 280). Zhuge Liang was an excellent politician, militarist, diplomat and
astronomer. In addition, the Temple of Liu Bei, the emperor of Shuhan, and his
mausoleum are well-known historical sites inside this big scenic spot.
Wuhou Temple is located in the southwestern part of downtown Chengdu. The date
of its establishment is unclear. We know only that it was built next to the
Temple of Liu Bei. Consequently, the entrance plaque reads “Zhaolie Temple of
Shuhan Kingdom”. Zhaolie is the posthumous title of Liu Bei. The current Wuhou
Temple was rebuilt in 1672.
Jinli
Street. Chengdu is a city brimming with a strong leisurely ambience
with Jinli Street as the typical representative. The street is located to the
east of the Wuhou Temple of Chengdu (the most famous Three Kingdoms period (220
- 280) relic museum in China).
It is recorded that as early as the Qin Dynasty (221 BC - 206 BC), Jinli Street
was the most famous place for baldachin - a rich, ornate cloth. And it was one
of the busiest commercial areas during the Shu Kingdom (221-263). Hence, it is
known as 'First Street of the Shu Kingdom'. In order to reclaim its prosperity
of former days, it was restored with contributions from the Wuhou Temple and was
opened to public in October of 2004. Since then, visitors from all over China
and abroad gather here to relax, admire the traditional-style buildings, and
taste some local snacks.
Wide and Narrow Alley (Kuanzhai
Xiangzi). The history of Wide and Narrow Alley can be dated back to
the Qing Dynasty (1644 - 1911 AD). At that time, the area was a city within the
Chengdu city called Mancheng City or Shaocheng City, where the court quartered
troops. As time passed by, the city decayed and only the Wide Alley and Narrow
Alley were left. In 2003, renovation work of the two alleys began, aiming to
build a complex cultural and business street with the functions of tourism and
recreation. On June 14, 2008, the newly renovated Wide, Narrow and Well Alley
were opened to the public, located in nowadays Qingyang District, to the east of
Tongren Road and west of Changshun Street. Nowadays, Wide and Narrow Alley is a
popular entertainment and nightlife block as well as a famous tourism site, with
lots of restaurants, pubs, teahouses, and stores selling featured souvenirs.
Dujiangyan
Irrigation System,
is honored as the 'Treasure of Sichuan', which still plays a crucial role in
draining off floodwater, irrigating farms and providing water resources for more
than 50 cities in the province.
In China, Chengdu is always praised as the Tian Fu Zhi Guo, which means
'Nature's Storehouse'. Over 2,200 years ago, the city was threatened by the
frequent floods caused by flooding of the Minjiang River (a tributary of the Yangtze
River
Sanxingdui
Museum (Three-Star Piles Museum), Sanxingdui Museum (Three-Star Piles Museum) is
located in Northeast of Three-Star Piles archeological site, west of the famous
cultural city of Guanghan, on the bank of Jian River (commonly called Yazi
River), 40 kilometers (about 24.9 miles) north of Chengdu City. Covering an
exhibition area of 4,000 square meters (nearly 1 acre), and opened in October
1997 this is an archeological museum with excellent modern facilities. The
cultural relics preserved here were mostly unearthed from the Three-Star Piles
site.
Three-Star Piles site is a cultural relic of the ancient Shu (Sichuan). It is an
important archeological discovery which changed the people's understanding of
ancient history and culture. If you want to visit a place to know more about
Chinese Shu (Sichuan) culture, make it this one, for the civilization shown by
the cultural relics can be called a true wonder.
Three-Star Piles refer to three earth mounds at the site. The Relic area
stretches for about 12 square kilometers (about 4.6 square miles), which is the
largest, oldest, and most connotational Shu cultural relic in Sichuan. It is
said that the Heavenly Emperor cast down three handfuls of earth which fell near
the Jian River and became three earth mounds on Chengdu Plain. The three earth
piles, described as three golden stars in a line, hence became known as
Three-Star Piles. Now affirmed by modern archaeology, the three earth mounds are
in reality the southern wall of an ancient city that was built of earth. There
are two breaches in the city wall, after the collapse and subsequent erosion; it
became the three mounds we see today.