[Chongqing Travel Notes] Good things always happen unexpectedly

“The light rail passes through the building”

Orange | Photographed by in May 2021

 

【0524 Today's itinerary】

7:00/9:00 Get up and wash up + take a morning walk: Yazhan Trail

9:10 breakfast

10:00/13:00 Check-in: Liziba + Lunch + Eling Second Factory

14:30/16:30 Check in: Chaotianmen Pier

16:30 Dinner

18:30/22:45 Airport, fly to Lijiang

10:45/11:40 Check-in at B&B

 

[Travel Notes in Running Account]

 

The excitement was not over yet, and I was very energetic. I got up at 7 o'clock, washed up, and went out for a walk.

 

——Cliffside river view

I just noticed when I came back last night that there is a [Yazhan Trail] next to the B&B. I got up early this morning and planned to go for a walk alone and enjoy the morning scene of Chongqing. The weather was still extremely foggy. A few hundred meters from the B&B to the trail, I saw only a few people. Some were carrying burdens on the road, some were building houses, and some were looking for breakfast. There were no tourists, but locals. Too few.

When we arrived at the trail, it was just a corridor built on a stone wall. It was far different in scale from yesterday's trail. It was quite a sight to overlook the Yangtze River, see the workers working on the river, and listen to the churning of the ships. A completely new experience. By the way, there are also towering trees growing out of the cracks in the rocks. It’s quite impressive to experience the 100-meter-high buildings on the left and the 100-meter-high cliffs on the right up close.

Breakfast, I’ll talk about it later.

CulturalStone Sculptures Can Be Seen Everywhere

 

Trail·View

 

Trail · Climb up the stairs

 

Trail·River and boat

——Checking in at Liziba

 

Departing at 10 o'clock, I checked in by subway [Liziba Light Rail]. I didn’t feel anything at all when I watched it live. I really don’t understand what’s the reason for the fire? I clocked in purely for the sake of clocking in. When a light rail car came, the crowd burst into exclamation. If there were people living upstairs, they might be disturbed to death.

 

Liziba·Internet celebrity

 

——Thoughts in a taxi

 

Stop briefly, then take a taxi (female driver) to [Eling Second Factory].

If you want to choose grassroots representatives for each city, I think [taxi driver] can be an alternative for Chongqing. On the one hand, it is because they can come into contact with the widest group of tourists and leave an impression of the city on tourists through their words and deeds; on the other hand, they flexibly shuttle through the mountain city, a city with unique terrain and road conditions, which is really surprising. Marvel. I don’t know if the Transportation Research Institute is interested in conducting a study similar to the “National Ranking of Drivers’ Driving Skills Cities”. I think Chongqing drivers will definitely rank among the top three!

winding mountain road

In addition to being amazed by the driver's unparalleled driving skills, she also helped me solve two questions that had puzzled me since I got off the plane.

(1)

Question: The buildings in Chongqing are so dangerous. If there is an earthquake or something, how many casualties will it cause?

Answer: Most of the mountains in Chongqing are made of stone, so the foundation of the building is very strong and stable, and there has never been an earthquake in the area.

(2)

Question: Chongqing has many trees and a very high coverage rate. If all the leaves fall off in autumn and winter, wouldn’t the whole city look ugly? Sanitation workers must be very tired from sweeping the floor, right?

Answer: There are many kinds of trees in Chongqing, most of which are evergreen all year round. Even if some trees lose their leaves, there will not be a scene of withering of everything like in the north.

If you don’t understand, just ask, it’s time to show off!

Trail·Grass in the cracks of rocks

 

——Culture and Creativity of Factory No.2

Eling Factory No. 2, a well-known local cultural and creative park in Chongqing, has the flavor of Beijing 798. A dilapidated factory, a few abandoned buildings, a few carefully arranged check-in points, a bunch of weird cultural and creative brands, and many young brothers and sisters who came here because of their reputation, let’s live together! Many cultural and creative products are indeed very thoughtful, but the prices are not cheap. When we get to a place like this, Reiko is basically the one who walks around, while I carry the bags and occasionally admire the young lady.

We also had lunch here, which I’ll talk about later.

Factory No. 2 Store Recruitment

 

Factory 2·Abandoned Factory Building

 

——Pier 6

Chaotianmen Pier was not originally on the guide list. But it was only after 1 o'clock after dinner, and there was still some time before the 9 o'clock flight. I really wanted to experience it, so after a quick check, I went to my destination. I took a taxi, but the driver dropped me halfway down the road, and I had to navigate for a long time before finding the right place.

There are many types of piers. For example, the Summer Palace and Beihai Park, which we often visit, all have dedicated tourist piers. Chaotianmen obviously does not fall into this category. Just walking from Pier 1 to Pier 6 (don’t ask me why I want to go to Pier 6, just backhand XZ) takes more than ten minutes. Looking from a distance, the big iron chain used for anchoring alone felt thicker than my thigh. Then I suddenly realized, oh, it turns out this is a dock where ships dock.

There is an episode: the entire pier is very wide, but most tourists crowd into Pier 6 to take pictures. I can understand many young ladies, but the overbearing and crowded square dancing ladies should not join in the fun. Judging from their chattering, it is obvious that they do not understand the meaning of crowding in to check in. Oh, this damn herd mentality!

Chaotianmen Pier 6

 

Chaotianmen·Pier 6

 

——————————

After dinner, we headed to the airport and rushed to our next destination - Lijiang. After getting off the plane, it was almost 11 o'clock in the evening, so I contacted the express driver provided by the B&B. It took nearly an hour to reach the B&B in Lijiang Old Town. After checking in, I quickly washed up and went to sleep. I was very tired and almost speechless all the way.

Waiting for flight to Lijiang

Waiting for flight·Go to Lijiang

【What to say that day】

The 2-day trip to Chongqing has come to an end. Overall, it is very fulfilling, and there is no regret that it is not finished; again, I emphasize the importance of preparing a strategy in advance, and don’t forget to prepare for emergencies!

• [About accommodation]: 6 points

The second night was at a B&B in Lijiang. Search [Lijiang Old Town] on Baidu Map. Looking around, you can see that the surrounding area is densely packed with B&Bs. "With such a mature supporting system, even if you choose with your eyes closed, it won't be much different, right?" This is what I thought when I booked a B&B.

In fact, we both stepped on a thunderbolt. Wooden building, very poor soundproofing, the small courtyard is great but the interior decoration is average, the window is next to the corridor, not opening the curtains means there is no window, the door bolt is deformed, the boss lady revealed her dishonesty during the short chat... Sure enough, the higher the expectations, The greater the disappointment. Now that you've come, just make peace with it, it's just a sleep anyway.

—— Geographical location: Just outside Lijiang Old Town, you can get off the car and walk for a short time, which can effectively avoid the embarrassment of dragging your suitcase along potholed roads; it is only a 10-minute walk from the business district of the ancient city, but it is very large. There is a chance of getting lost; the surrounding area is full of B&Bs, so it is easy to create a comparison mentality;

——Life surroundings: Catering, travel, and supermarkets are all available, but it has a strong commercial atmosphere, which I don’t like.

——Accommodation experience: Average.

Lijiang B&Bs

 

• [About eating and drinking]: 10 points

An extremely satisfying day, like a feast for the stomach and tongue! Nearly half a year has passed, and when I look back, the most unforgettable thing is the food in Chongqing. If yesterday's meal was a small test, then today can be regarded as a gluttonous feast. Fortunately, after eating like this for two days, I didn't get angry or have oral ulcers.

——Unknown breakfast restaurant: Xiaolongbao and porridge; I randomly bought it downstairs after a walk. Unexpectedly, it directly reminded me of the Xiaolongbao after recess in junior high school. With the same ingredients and the same aroma, this unexpected breakfast brought me joy for the day.

——Angry Chuanchuan Shop: Chuanchuan Xiang; when you are tired of playing, find a place to eat a few skewers, it is so beautiful and enjoyable. It is worth mentioning that this store charges not by the quantity, but by the weight of the skewers. Based on this, Reiko came up with the idea of ​​"fire-heated wooden skewers". I don’t know if I saved any money in the end, but the focus of the entire process shifted to how to dry the skewers better and faster. I wonder if the proprietress often encounters such customers?

——A cup of sour milk tea:2 cups of milk tea; repurchase, hahaha.

——Guaxixi Hotpot Restaurant: Hotpot; How can you not eat hotpot when you come to Chongqing? Before leaving, even if you are not hungry, you still have to satisfy this wish. There were several hot pot options in the guide I made before. This Guaxixi restaurant is just downstairs from us. After observing it for 2 days, I felt it should be pretty good, so I went there. It's around 4pm, so it's not a meal time, so the service should be super good. The hot pot is also super delicious. I can’t describe how delicious it is. Anyway, it is so delicious that I still want to eat it until my throat is full. Even though I ordered a lot, I finished all the food.

• [About playing] 7 points

Today's attractions are similar to yesterday's, or even worse overall. In just 2 days, you can see that when you come to Chongqing, you don’t actually have to go to some famous attractions. Traveling here is more about feeling the atmosphere and rhythm of life in the entire city, so that you can temporarily stay away from the familiar and familiar places. Repeated environments, to experience different fireworks in the world.

This is one of the reasons why we excluded Chengdu when we made the guide. Chongqing and Chengdu are a bit too similar: they lack national-level landmark tourist attractions, such as the Forbidden City in Beijing and the Terracotta Warriors and Horses in Xi'an, but they are extremely comfortable and enjoyable to live in. Time is limited, just try one first.