This summer vacation I planned to visit places I have wanted to go : inner Mongolia and ancient capitals: Nanjing and Luoyang. I had never been to Chongqing and people said it is a place not to be missed. It is very hot as it is surrounded by mountains and little air movement as a result. Because of this it is one of the “furnaces of China”. It is also in Sichuan, known for its spicy food.
Chongqing was the capital of the Republic of China for seven years during the late 1930s and early 1940s during the Anti-Japanese War (World War II). This isn’t one of the ancient capitals but a place I was told not to miss.
Chongqing Jiefangbei Pedestrian Street (重庆解放碑步行街) was just outside the Crowne Plaza hotel we stayed at. There is the People’ s Liberation Monument at the center of the city. It is in commemoration of the end of Japanese invasion during second world War.
The city reminds me of Hong Kong with close buildings and hilly streets that seem to rise out of the water. We took the metro to view some spots. One is the metro line that runs through a building.
A video I took of the metro train: https://youtu.be/fhUylmYOcRo
We visited Ciqikou old town which was built in 1000 AD and was an ancient port. It is surrounded by a mountain and three rivers. Now it has beautiful tea houses, unique snacks and gifts and a temple (we didn’t make it to the temple as there were too many people). It was great to try some snacks and look around.
The Art street is more graffiti than street art but the art on the buildings was pretty impressive and anyone can buy paint and a brush and become an artist. We took a didi to 501 Art Base which is the Art university and walked back taking in the sites and buying souvenirs. .
