TRAVEL: CHENGDU

欢度国庆长假 10/1 

Chongqing originally was part

Of Sichuan (hence the cq hotpot and the sz hotpot) but due to huge population it split an area becoming 重庆省 in 97. Made it to the hotel. It's dodgy. Some cockroaches 蟑螂 or cockaroachayy as we call them, the toilet is Chinese shower pop and stinks plus they want to charge us 60 per night unlike the online agreed price, so we stay for 22 per night for one night. Fine by me. But we have the whole dorm to ourselves, not that the beds are amazing but it's a good area (春熙路）but we've decided to instead go to leshan 乐山大佛 and do the Buddha the next day and camp Out and do 峨眉山 the next morning hahaha with wine but of course红酒！

We went through chunxi main area pedestrian street posing with fake

Pandas heading to wenshu temple 文都寺 the streets were full of peddlars selling local snacks, locally made protects and ofc Buddhist religious items. A large temple complex (full of mosquitos) it was free it. Quite busy but not overly so even if it was the first day of 国定节日 big grounds with a small park like area with a fountain statue pond filled with goldfish. Also an area which seemed to be a tortoise breeding site haha so many were there。 a group of Chinese were loudly walking past discussing how it was weird that foreigners had come to the temple, why do that, on her return I politely asked her why she had visited the temple, repeating her earlier statement of confusion, she quickly walked away embarrassed haha: we then walked back pasting the huge mao statue (the very center of Chengdu) at the huge tianfu square 天府广场。 getting lots of photos. Flags were on sell the streets were packed karin bought chinese flags *爱国 
we went to the old street area, packed out,ventured in slightly and felt like a sardine. Not the most pleasant. 

Headed back to the hostel to meet malik and leo 刘晓鹏 chilled for a while before we all went to get food in a nearby restaurant. Staying till closing playing 'who am i' turns out malik might not know Chinese but he knows some Cantonese swear words. It's quite funny seeing and hearing us all working together to talk in broken English, Chinese, Estonian and the odd bit of Cantonese mixed in there too haha. Able to store our luggage at this hostel and pick it up when we get back from emei Shan on 2nd 。

TRAVEL: GOLDEN WEEK SICHUAN 国庆节重庆 DAZU ROCK CARVINGS

30th september chongqing 重庆

night in chongqing in a cheap ass Chinese hotel

 12 hour high speed train 

up early and went to the bus station to head to dazu rockcarvings 大足石刻 

http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/912

about 40 there then student price in for around 40 too. 

There was basically no one about! 

http://www.topchinatravel.com/chongqing/transport-information-of-dazu-rock-carvings.htm

Was amazing for a UNeScO site 遗产 especially in china. The carvings are not so warn down, lots still with colour though

Some Of course had be refurbished/retouched. 

 One area near the start depicted hell,Lots of torturing and foot cutting apparently?... they were all in good condition considering they were outside. 

The female boddivistas 菩萨 with their lotus 莲花 were especially beautiful. Though unfortunately the best known section, of the huge reclining Buddha, was enclosed off getting repair work, covered up and unviewable. A shame as it looked wonderful but history needs to be protected in as much of a natural way as possible. We meet a couple Indian and Malaysia foreigns and chatted to them, one informing us of the female idols carved at the exit representing the mountain keepers and protectors. 

A hot day of 30' we explored the beautiful temple within the area, not so ancient but charming and not over pretentious like others, (jingan temple in Shanghai for instance) not so many People Too which is always a bonus. 

Back in the city center (we took the local bus for 2rmb to get there and back) We stopped Early to try the special 小面 locality dish, not especially spicy and sort of soupy but very tasty (veggie friendly too) making our way back we meet the guys later and went for our first Chongqing hotpot 重庆火锅 here they like to give you sauces To accompany the hot Pot. We did half and half, so 中辣/清辣 tasty, but maybe too Much garlic. Though still Hard To Digest the following day.  

Karin and I shared the bed (2 queen size is More than enough Space for 4 people I reckon) up early early the next day splitting taxis to the station, there's 2 sections, we went To the south area and had to get a taxi up to the north, but made it in time. 4 hours hard seat. I passed out. (I seem to sleep a

Lot this trip on buses and trains)we arrived utterly roasted into 四川省 to the 省会 成都市