Chengdu

I am welcomed to Chengdu at 5am by the carriage attendant making it clear that this is the last stop. Grabbing my gear I head into the early morning mist towards the exit of the station to find a melee of taxi awaiting the new arrivals. However, there is no touting, no hassle and I am allowed to pass easily through there assembly in order to walk to the hostel a mere 2km away ish…
Using common sense and the map I soon find myself on the street that I need and begin my hunt for the hostel… I am staying at “Sams cosy garden hotel” Hostel which proves elusive at first - so much so that after 1 ½ hours of walking I decide to give them a call - happily reception speaks English and comes to find me at a petrol station only 2 mins walk from their entrance. (I had walked past it due to the sign being tiny!!) However, the location is within walking distance of excellent bus and train links and I find that reception has several tours to check out. Panda’s are booked for tomorrow :)
My 8 bed dorm room (35y/£4ish shared with two ladies and a man who I prey I did not disturb as I entered at 6.40am!!) is spick and span with clean sheets, 4 stacked bunks with lockers and lockable phone recharging points big enough to fit a lap top - also there is a western toilet attached to the room, two sinks and an excellent hot shower (which is made use of straight after breakfast ;)). I am impressed with the facilities here and recommend the breakfasts as for just £1.50 you can have a large bole of porridge with mixed fruit and toast, I am also provided a mug of free coffee as a welcome ;) Fab place.
Caught up with 1 hour of sleep and then decided it was time to hit the town - Bus 99 takes you straight into the centre and past Mao’s statue pride of place in the main square - I am also aware rapidly that there are a number of Maccy D’s, KFC’s and Starbucks on route… I am not interested in this today - it is time to walk around the city and get my bearings ;) Taking Bus 99 to the 14th stop along the southern bound route you are dropped near to the ‘Western Tower’ (Hard to miss) and if you want I pleasant coffee in wonderfully spacious surroundings and a full range of western books then head further south along the block and find “Bookworm” a wonderfully quaint book shop/café/bar/restaurant which is well worth a visit as the coffee comes in mugs and the décor is bookshelf elegance, like being in an old library :) Fab.
Leaving the Bookworm was a real effort, but lots of the city to explore and determined to walk. I find my way back to the city centre where I find a large statue of Mao facing down a wide boulevard with fantastically sculpted lights and a massive amount of building work - in fact the entire city appears to be under re-construction as more and more high rises go up in place of the old soviet style blocks. There is a real mix of old and new with just a single block with Gucci & Louis Vouton practically rubbing shoulders with street markets and flee market style shops, a stunning diversity at every turn. I do find four, yes four Starbucks and settle in for a rest… A refuel of a Snickers bar and coke soon have me under way across the city…
About 3km across the city on the way out to the ring road you find an amazing street (Qing Tai Lu) which is a modern build but in the style of ancient historical buildings 0_0 This is clearly for the tourist market but I was the only foreign tourist there today, the rest were businessmen waiting to organise development or Chinese taking an interest. ALL of the shops along the street are geared for the wealthy with Gold being the most widely available product here!! Worth a visit…
At the end of the street you will come to the entrance to a park with a pagoda and covered bridge, this is clearly a place for the locals in the area to come and take the air (thick as it may be with dust and covering every leaf with a grey layer) yet they come to walk around the immaculately manicured lawns and gardens while sitting and playing tabletop games - I can imagine the clatter of tiles over the empty table tops - as it is winter there is only a few hardy soles venturing around the paths with me…
My last stop today is the Green Ram Temple, just a few metres away from this park and on the edge of the culture park (another great place to walk around for free and the toilet has a fish tank full of tropical fish atop the urinal block!! Guess it gives you something to look at). The temple is a large complex hemmed in by a growing urban neighbourhood, its delicate arts and Buddhist imagery displayed within a range of buildings flanked by incense burners filled with glowing sticks and accompanied by the prayers of the monks. A compelling little attraction which is also worth the time to locate and walk around. Peaceful.
Travelling on the buses here is simple and at only 2y/20p a trip it is within reach of the vast majority of the population - therefore as you would expect they are very well used. Although I find myself as the only western tourist on them!! Guess the others have money to burn on taxi fares ;) In fact the only time I see another western tourist today is at the Youth Hostel and at the Bookworm, it seems this really is low season…