Chongqing

Chongqing (重庆; Chóngqìng, formerly spelled Chungking) is fast becoming the most economically important city in the interior West China, with an urban population of around 8.8 million. In addition to the central urban area, the municipality of Chongqing also includes some 80,000 km² (31,000 sq mi) of the neighboring countryside and smaller towns, with approximately 30 million people altogether.

Chongqing is also the launching point for scenic boat trips down the Yangtze River through the Three Gorges Dam. The spectacular Buddhist Dazu Rock Carvings are three hours west of Chongqing City in the outlying Chongqing Municipality and are listed as an UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Chongqing is notorious for its hot and humid weather. The air quality, winter or summer, can be challenging to people with respiratory problems due to massive amounts of smog. Chongqing has been ranked by the World Bank as one of the most polluted cities in the world.

Understand


Chongqing is one of the four municipalities in China, the cities that are not part of a province but report directly to the national government; it is the only municipality that is not on the east coast, (the others are Beijing, Shanghai and Tianjin). It was historically a part of Sichuan province, and is culturally and linguistically considered to be part of it.

During World War II, Chongqing served as the temporary capital of China after Nanjing fell to the Japanese. Despite being heavily bombed, Chongqing was successfully defended by the Chinese forces and avoided occupation for the duration of the war.

Chongqing urban area (covered in this article) consists of the following nine districts: Yuzhong, Dadukou, Jiangbei, Shapingba, Jiulongpo, Nan'an, Banan, Yubei, and Beibei.

By plane

 * Terminal 1 - Closed for renovation. The re-opening date has not been announced.
 * Terminal 2 - Serves four domestic airlines: China West Air, China Express Airlines, Sichuan Airlines and China Spring Airlines. Metro Line 3 and Line 10 connects this terminal to downtown Chongqing. Bus service is also available from the ground level of the terminal. Taxi to downtown Chongqing costs about ¥80.
 * Terminal 3 - Serves domestic airlines and international airlines, connecting Chongqing to major international cities. Metro Line 10 runs through the transportation hub of T3. There is free airport shuttle service between T3 and T2, which takes approximately 15 minutes for each trip.
 * Terminal 3 - Serves domestic airlines and international airlines, connecting Chongqing to major international cities. Metro Line 10 runs through the transportation hub of T3. There is free airport shuttle service between T3 and T2, which takes approximately 15 minutes for each trip.

There are several ways to get from the airport to the city:
 * Chongqing Metro Line 3 connects the airport to the city centre. The station is accessible from both terminals.
 * The Airport shuttle bus departs from the ground level of Terminal 2 to in central Chongqing. There are two stops, so when you stand in line, look carefully.
 * A taxi to downtown Chongqing would cost about ¥40-80.

By train
There are three major train stations in Chongqing:

High speed trains (G series) link to Chongqing North Station to Beijing in about 12 hours, and to Chengdu in about 1½ hours. In addition, there are slow trains that take about twice as long.

The longest railway trip from Chongqing is from Harbin to Chongqing North, a 48-hour, 3,535-km ride. The price of hard ticket is ¥344 and hard berth is ¥599.

Most train tickets can be purchased through the help of the hotel your are staying. The tickets are then delivered to the hotel for you to pick up.

By bus
Long distance buses travel to Chongqing from almost anywhere. There are numerous buses into Chongqing, most notably is the hourly service to and from Chengdu, Nanchong, and Xi'an. From the west Chengdu is 2½ hours and to the east Wanzhou is 3 hours, both on good highways and good buses. Avoid the "sleeper" buses as they must be the most uncomfortable way to travel ever invented.



Get around
The metro and bus systems are advised as the best forms of transportation and are very cheap and efficient.

By metro
The first section of Chongqing's rapid transit system opened in 2005. Since then, major expansions have now linked major railway stations, major shopping districts and the airport, with more extensions under construction. Announcements are made both in Mandarin and English. No smoking is allowed and all services are air-conditioned, which is a reason alone to board one from between April to September! Don't forget your electronic ticket card to get out of the station. If you overshoot your stop, go to the service counter and add value to your card.

Chaotianmen to Jiandingpo, east-west heavy rail metro line. Handy for visiting Ciqikou, Jiefangbei, or Chaotianmen.

Jiaochangkou to Yudong, monorail line. Convenient for visiting the Zoo, Stilwell Museum, Jiefangbei, Jiulongpo, Peoples Hall and Three Gorges Museum.

Yudong to Jiangbei Airport Terminal 2, monorail line running north-south. Convenient for Chongqing North Railway Station, Guanyinxiao, Chongqing Central Railway Station, EXPO Garden Center, NanPing, and airport.

Jiazhoulu to shichuan, pass Chongqing North Railway Station North Square.

Jiangjin to yuegangdadao,Access to areas outside central Chongqing (Jiangjin District)

Beibei to Chayuan, north-south subway line thru Yuzhong district (near Jeifangbei) in central Chongqing.

Wangiazhaug to Lanhualu, north-south via airport.

环线（Loop line） Through the core area of Chongqing central city,can transfer to all other subway lines at stops on this line. Convenient for visiting the:Chongqingxi Railway Station,South Square of Chongqingbei Railway Station.

By bus
Buses are frequent and cheap, but unless you can read Chinese you have to know where they are going and choose the right number bus going in the right direction. If you are going to one of the city centres in Chongqing city, simply ask each bus if they go there. There are four city centres, so be sure you know the name of the place you want to go to:


 * (Sandplains) NW part of town and is an academic and university centre
 * (Northplace) which includes Paradise Walk shopping center - There are two bus stations near the pedestrian street (Guanyinxiao).
 * (Southernplains)
 * , the primary centre of Chongqing, contains a pedestrian mall with a major shopping and entertainment centre and a series of supertall skyscrapers around the Jeifangbei monument. There are two bus stations in Jiefangbei, south and west of the monument.

By taxi
Taxis in Chongqing are bright yellow small sized Suzuki sedans. They are relatively cheap (starting at ¥8 and ¥1.8/km, ¥8.9 and ¥2.25/km after midnight) and can be easily found 24 hours a day. Few drivers speak anything but Chinese, so you must know where you are going. Either have your destination written for you in Chinese, learn how to say it, or be able to direct the driver. A good way to use taxis is to gather cards from hotels, then simply show the driver the one you want to go to or is nearest to your destination.

Caution: Empty taxis are hard to find on extremely hot days. It is advisable to seek alternative transportation or stay indoors. This is because most taxis have A/C running, thus requiring more frequent natural gas refills. There aren't enough natural gas stations around and the pump pressure is frequently inadequate, so many taxis will be stranded lining up for gas.

By bike
Biking is the worst way to get around Chongqing. The mountains are difficult to climb, it is very easy to get lost (due to the many hills and valleys and the two rivers), and it is incredibly dangerous to bike on city streets. However, if you visit the University city of Chongqing, you can take a bike or an electric bike at there.

See
Chongqing has the largest population in West China and is the focus of China's "Go West" development strategy. As a result, it is a very lively and rapidly modernizing city, although it does get a bit too hectic most of the time. On the surface, the city appears rough around the edges and a bit gritty and thus there may appear to be not much to do in the daytime, but further investigation will uncover a city with truly its own character and a number of interesting sites actually worth looking into.

Streets and architecture




Most of Foreigner Street(美心洋人街） facilities have been demolished and it is closed to the public. The project moved to Fuling District in Chongqing（涪陵区）.
 * Hongyadong.jpg
 * Laifushi.jpg
 * Laifushi.jpg
 * Laifushi.jpg
 * Laifushi.jpg

Political heritage
Chongqing served as 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). It was also the site of important events during the Chinese Civil War (ended 1950). With this political history comes a number of historic sights which are worth visiting.

Cruises

 * Liangjing passage boat (两江小渡,), address: Chongqing Hongyadong Wharf (重庆洪崖洞码头). Time: 8:00am–18:00pm. A trip from Chaotianmen to Danzishi which cost about 6 min. Cost of a boat ticket: ¥10.
 * Liangjing passage boat (两江小渡,), address: Chongqing Hongyadong Wharf (重庆洪崖洞码头). Time: 8:00am–18:00pm. A trip from Chaotianmen to Danzishi which cost about 6 min. Cost of a boat ticket: ¥10.
 * Liangjing passage boat (两江小渡,), address: Chongqing Hongyadong Wharf (重庆洪崖洞码头). Time: 8:00am–18:00pm. A trip from Chaotianmen to Danzishi which cost about 6 min. Cost of a boat ticket: ¥10.

Hot springs
Chongqing is recognised as a renowned area for hot springs. There are dozens of options ranging from large complexes with their own hotels, ornate gardens and spa treatments, to smaller community based hot springs. Northern Hot Springs Park, Tianci Hot Springs and Southern Hot Springs Park are the largest of these facilities. There are special tourist buses available to these sites.



Food

 * Preserved Dried Beef (Niu Rou Gan)
 * Spicy Fine Beef Threads (Deng Ying Niu Rou)
 * Curiously Flavoured Horsebean (Guai Wei Hu Dou)
 * Pulverous Nuby Peach (He chuang Tao Pian)
 * Hot Pot (Chongqing huo guo)
 * Noodle (Chongqing XiaoMian, in addition there's also Dan-Dan Mian)
 * Hemp flowers (Ciqikou Chengchangyin Mahua)
 * Fuling pickle (Fuling Zhacai）
 * Jianghu cuisine（Geleshan Spicy Chicken）
 * Fengdu spicy chicken nuggets
 * Jiangjin rice candy

Local food
Chongqing is a harbor city and with this comes what is called dockside culture (matou wenhua). This culture is blamed for a lot of things from cursing profusely to... Hot Pot. While many great restaurants abound in the city, memorable dining is best along Nanbin Lu with incredible night views back across the Yangtze River with the Jeifangbei city skyline lit-up. Here are some examples of the city's many offerings.

Hot pot
Hot Pot (火锅 huǒguō, lit.: firepot) is one of Chongqing's claims to fame. In cities across China, one can find hot pot restaurants, but only Chongqing people can really stand a real hot pot, so if you want authenticity, get it while you can in Chongqing.

When ordering hot pot you have a choice between three kinds. First, the spicy version called red soup (hong tang). Then there is one without any spices. This is basically a bone soup, and it is tasty. To get this, simply ask for "yuán wèi" or tell them "wǒ bú yào là" which means "I don't want the spicy stuff!" Finally there is a compromise with Yuan Yang Hot Pot (Yuan Yang Huo Guo), which is basically a pot split down the middle with the spicy stuff on one side and the mild on the other.

For those who like spicy but do not like it too spicy, it is possible to order red soup without the jolt (wei la hong tang). It is a nice mild experience.

For those who can not speak Chinese, it would be best to grab a Chinese friend to take you, though be warned, if your friend is a man you'll have to put up with a lot of drinking, if you're a man too you'll be expected to smoke more than you normally would, and some of the things they go slipping into the pot might not be your cup of tea. You will also have to be aware that you will be fed with a lot of dishes from your Chinese friends because they like to see your bowl is full of food. You might feel a little uncomfortable being fed like a child, but that is the way Chinese people show concern and enthusiasm towards their friends, especially when eating hot pot.

Suggested dishes at nicer restaurants

 * Twice cooked spicy pork slices 回锅肉 (huiguorou)
 * Fish slices in sour and spicy pickled vegetable soup 酸菜鱼 (suancaiyu)
 * Fried pork fillet slices in sweet and sour sauce 糖醋里脊 (tangculiji)
 * Steamed fatty pork with preserved vegetables (shaobai)
 * Fish flavoured aubergine 鱼香茄子 (yuxiangqiezi)
 * Onions and parsleys in spicy mustard (laohucai)
 * Fish with tofu (doufuyu)
 * Fish flavoured pork shreads 鱼香肉丝 (yuxiangrousi)
 * Chinese bouilli (hongshaorou)
 * Gongpao Chicken (gongpaojiding)
 * Black agaric and pork slice stir-fries (muerroupian)
 * Pork/beef slices in hot and spicy soup 水煮肉片 (shuizhuroupian) (very spicy)
 * Numbing and spicy tofu 麻婆豆腐 (mapodoufu) (spicy)

Suggested dishes at noodle shops
All dishes served in the noodle shops can be either spicy flavoured or plain flavoured.
 * Noodle with no toppings (Chongqing xiaomian) ¥7.0
 * Beef noodle (niuroumian) ¥18.0
 * Cold noodle (liangmian) ¥5.0
 * Rice/soybean pudding slices (liangfen'r (fer)) ¥5.0
 * Szechuan dumplings (hundun (T'sao sou)) ¥12.0

Western food
There are many "Western restaurants", but it is very difficult to find any real western food in them. Many smallish restaurants will have a reasonable stab at spaghetti bolognaise, and some will have menus in "Chinglish" and even pictures of dishes. However as an exception, you can find quite nice fusion dishes (ranging from Japanese Sushi and Tempura to American Sirloin Steak).

Drink
There are many bars in Chongqing, but most are underpopulated. Generally the local bottled beer is ¥10, and the variety includes several local beers and even Guinness (expensive) on occasions. If you go to one of the small restaurants to eat, you can buy bottles of local beer at ¥3 upwards.

As a warning, some bars have adopted a less pleasant method to send pretty girls to accompany and entertain you, and then ask for huge additional sums when you leave. Take care.

Sleep
There are hundreds of hotels all over the city ranging from dormitary style for ¥30 per night, through three star equivalent hotels for ¥150, up to the numerous top western hotels for ¥600-2000 per night, and many more are being added and are under construction. Most hotels are rarely fully booked. You can always check the room before you commit.

Go next

 * Qijiang